A US district judge has ruled in favor of Megan Garcia, a grieving mother who sued Google over its involvement with Character.AI’s chatbots. Garcia claimed the chatbots contributed to her 14-year-old son’s suicide and that Google played a part in their design by providing components and participating in their integration. The judge found Garcia’s allegations plausible, allowing her to move forward with discovery and potentially prove her claims against Google. This ruling sets a new precedent for holding tech companies accountable for defective products, according to Garcia’s lawyer.
Source: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2025/05/did-google-lie-about-building-a-deadly-chatbot-judge-finds-it-plausible