Suthir Balaji’s mother Poornima claims open AI researcher was murdered in cold blood

Suthir Balaji, a 26-year-old Indian-American researcher and former OpenAI employee, was tragically found dead in his San Francisco apartment on November 26, 2024. The San Francisco Chief Medical Examiner’s Office ruled his death a suicide. Nevertheless, Suchil’s family has raised questions about the situation and is calling for a thorough investigation. Suchil expressed growing concerns about OpenAI’s practices, particularly the use of data from internet sources to train AI models, which he believed violated copyright law. He resigned from OpenAI in August 2024, disillusioned with what he believed was a deviation from the company’s original mission of ensuring AI benefits humanity. In an interview with The New York Times in October, Still expressed ethical concerns, and his mother, Poornima Rama Rao Balaji, reflected on his difficult period. “This is not a normal situation,” she told Business Insider.

Afterwards, she told X: “Steel’s apartment had been ransacked, there was evidence of a struggle in the bathroom, and judging by the blood stains, it appeared someone had beaten him in the bathroom.” Authorities said this was a case of cold-blooded murder. I declared it a suicide.” Lobbying in SF City will not prevent us from receiving justice. We are demanding an FBI investigation. ”

Poornima recalled that her son showed genius from an early age. He spoke complex sentences at age 2 and built his first computer by age 13. At the age of 17, he joined Quora as a programmer while continuing his education. Suchil then attended the University of California, Berkeley, where he won $100,000 in a TSA-sponsored challenge. In 2018, he brought his expertise to OpenAI and contributed to the development of ChatGPT. But as OpenAI changed direction under CEO Sam Altman, Suchil became increasingly critical of the company, believing its actions posed a risk to humanity.

Ms. Poornima shared her concerns about Mr. Still’s outspokenness and warned him to protect himself during their last conversation. “I told him not to act alone in the fight against corporate fraud,” she said. Hours before his death, Still celebrated his birthday and seemed in good spirits, leaving his family wondering what could have gone wrong so quickly. Purnima continued to press ahead with the autopsy and seek clarity on the events surrounding Still’s death, stressing that “we want to keep questions open.”