Suchir Balaji Death Case: Family Dismisses Autopsy Findings, Sends Hair Sample for Testing

San Francisco: The final autopsy findings of OpenAI whistleblower Suchir Balaji have confirmed his death to be a suicide, despite his family's allegations about lapses in the probe. Suchir Balaji's family has now dismissed the final autopsy report and has sent their son's hair for fresh testing.

Suchir Balaji Death: Family Dismisses Autopsy Report, Sends Hair for Fresh Testing

In a post on the social media platform ‘X’, Suchir Balaji's mother, Poornima Rao has shared how the OpenAI whistleblower's family has rejected the autopsy report and so has their lawyer. The post reads, “We received the autopsy report last Friday. Our counsel and we disagree with their decision. There are tons of inconsistencies in their decision. Under lying assumptions are not supporting the facts in reports.”

Promising to continue the investigation, the family has now sent Suchir Balaji's hair which they had ‘found in his apartment’, for fresh testing. Suchir Balaji's mother's post further read, “We continue our investigation. We have sent the hair found in apartment for testing. We are fighting for justice and not back up.”

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What Does Suchir Balaji's Autopsy Report Say?

The 13-page autopsy report, along with a four-page joint response to the lawsuit, concluded that no foul play was involved and that the 26-year-old OpenAI whistleblower, Suchir Balaji died by suicide. The San Francisco County Medical Examiner determined that Balaji died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in his San Francisco apartment on November 26, 2024, officially closing the case after weeks of investigation.

“We realize that this information is difficult to receive, and we extend our sincere condolences to the Balaji family,” Scott and David Serrano Sewell, executive director of the medical examiner’s office, wrote. “We hope that this response may help bring some amount of closure to his grieving parents, friends, and family.”

Who is Suchir Balaji, What Happened to Him?

Suchir Balaji, an Indian American tech researcher and former OpenAI employee, was known for publicly criticizing the company’s use of copyrighted data in artificial intelligence (AI). Balaji joined OpenAI in 2019 and worked on several major projects, including training GPT-4 and improving ChatGPT’s performance. 

He left the company in August 2023, citing concerns about potential ethical violations and the misuse of copyrighted data for AI training.On his personal website, Balaji raised alarms about OpenAI’s practices, arguing that its data collection methods could amount to copyright infringement. His warnings fueled a broader debate on the ethical risks of generative AI, drawing significant attention within the tech industry.

He was found dead in his San Francisco apartment under mysterious circumstances. While his death was officially ruled a suicide, his family and some investigative journalists suspect foul play.