26 December 2024/ Business & Tech/ Jay BarmannParents of OpenAI Whistleblower Don't Believe He Died By Suicide, Order Second AutopsyThere is a bit more intrigue around the tragic death late last month of former OpenAI researcher Suchir Balaji, who was found dead in his Lower Haight apartment of an apparent suicide.Balaji had only recently become a whistleblower about OpenAI and its use of copyrighted material to train its ChatGPT AI model, speaking to the New York Times in an interview published in October. In addition to the legal issues around consuming copyrighted material, Balaji told the Times it was also "not a sustainable model for the internet ecosystem as a whole."On November 26, two days before Thanksgiving, Balaji was found dead in his apartment on Buchanan Street. The medical examiner deemed it a death by suicide, and the SFPD has said there is "no evidence of foul play."Balaji's mother, Poornima Ramarao, who lives in the Bay Area, tells Bay Area News Group this week that she and her husband are "demanding a thorough investigation" into their son's death. They do not believe he would have taken his own life, and they say there had been zero indication in his mental state that this could be a possibility."No one believes that he could do that," Ramarao tells the news group. The mother says that she and her husband had last spoken to their son on November 22, in a 10-minute phone call in which he had not indicated anything was wrong. He said he was heading out to get dinner.Ramarao said that when she had asked Balaji, who had quit his job at OpenAI over the summer, how he would make a living, he assured he wasn't concerned, and said "money is not important to me I want to offer a service to humanity."Balaji was reportedly working to establish a nonprofit that was centered on machine learning.Balaji also reportedly reassurred his parents about his decision to go public with his concerns about OpenAI, and they say they were proud of him and that he was untroubed by his decision. Days before his death, Balaji was named in a legal filing by the New York Times as a person with significant documents to support their case. The Times is among multiple companies suing OpenAI over the use of copyrighted materials."He was very happy," Ramarao tells Bay Area News Group, adding that he had just turned 26 less than a week earlier, and he had spent his birthday backpacking with high school friends in the Catalina Islands. "He had a blast. He had one of the best times of his life," the mother says.The parents have hired an attorney, Phil Kearney, and they have commissioned a second, independent autopsy.Previously: OpenAI Whistleblower Found Dead In His SF ApartmentIf you or someone you know is struggling with feelings of depression or suicidal thoughts, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline offers free, round-the-clock support, information and resources for help. Call or text the lifeline at 988, or see the 988lifeline.org website, where chat is available.