Musk Backs Suchir Balaji’s Mother Over Suspicion of Suicide

Elon Musk has expressed support for Poornima Ramarao, the mother of Suchir Balaji, in her claims of foul play regarding her son’s death. Balaji, a former OpenAI employee, was found dead in his San Francisco apartment. Prior to his death, he accused the company of copyright violations.

While a medical officer ruled his death a suicide and San Francisco police found no evidence of foul play, Balaji’s mother has called for an FBI investigation. She questions the police’s conclusion and shared that a private investigator and second autopsy contradict the official findings. In a post on X, she stated that her son’s apartment appeared ransacked, with signs of a struggle in the bathroom and blood spots, suggesting foul play rather than suicide.

Elon Musk, responding to her post, wrote, “This doesn’t seem like a suicide.”

Balaji had previously expressed growing concerns about AI’s impact on society. In an interview, his mother recalled how he went from being optimistic about AI to becoming skeptical, believing it could harm humanity. Before his death, Balaji had also accused OpenAI of using copyrighted data and contributing to the negative effects of technologies like ChatGPT. He left the company, stating that he couldn’t support a technology he believed would cause more harm than good.