Overview
- Video from a Vanity Fair interview on Monday shows an unnamed OpenAI publicist trying to cut off editor Mark Guiducci as he asked CEO Sam Altman about journalist Laura Reiley’s account of her daughter’s suicide after using ChatGPT.
- Altman told Guiducci he did not know Reiley and said private chat logs from users in “their hardest moments” probably should not be released without consent while expressing a willingness to work with the community on mental-health issues.
- OpenAI told the Daily Mail the publicist interjected because the interview was running over schedule and offered to arrange more time to continue the discussion after Altman addressed the topic.
- The interruption drew sharp criticism on social platforms, with users saying the move made OpenAI look evasive and fueling renewed public scrutiny of the company’s communications and safety practices.
- Reporters note the exchange revisits Laura Reiley’s February 2025 New York Times essay about her daughter Sophie Rottenberg’s five months talking to an AI ‘therapist’ called Harry and adds pressure for clearer rules on data access, researcher review, and how LLMs handle suicidal users.