Parents of Indian-origin OpenAI whistleblower doubt suicide ruling, hires private Investigator

Mercury News reported that Balaji’s body was discovered on November 26 during a police well-being check. While the Medical Examiner ruled his death as suicide with no indications of foul play, Balaji’s parents, Poornima Ramarao and Balaji Ramamurthy, have expressed doubts and hired an independent investigator to conduct a separate autopsy.

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OpenAI mourns Balaji, whistleblower in copyright lawsuit

Just three months prior to his death, Balaji had publicly accused the company of violating U.S. copyright laws during the development of ChatGPT. His disclosures were anticipated to play a major role in legal actions against the company. OpenAI has maintained that its activities comply with fair use regulations.

“We are devastated to learn of this incredibly sad news and our hearts go out to Suchir’s loved ones during this difficult time,” OpenAI stated in response to his passing.

Balaji worked at OpenAI for nearly four years before resigning in August. His contributions to the San Francisco-based company were widely respected. A co-founder recently described him as “one of OpenAI’s strongest contributors who was essential to developing some of its products.”

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Who was Suchir Balaji?

Balaji’s parents remember him as a “happy, smart, and brave young man”. They shared that he had a passion for hiking and had recently returned from a trip with friends.

Balaji was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area and first joined OpenAI as a summer intern in 2018 while studying computer science at the University of California, Berkeley. He later returned to the company full-time, where he worked on groundbreaking projects, including WebGPT, a precursor to ChatGPT.