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OpenAI whistleblower's mother wants suicide death investigation reopened

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OpenAI whistleblower's mother wants suicide death investigation reopened

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This story discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

Suchir Balaji, 26, who was found dead in his San Francisco home three months after accusing his former employer OpenAI of violating copyright laws in its development of ChatGPT, “felt that AI is a harm to humanity,” according to his mother.

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Balaji’s death on November 26 was ruled a suicide, and Fox News Digital previously reported that the San Francisco Police Department found no evidence of foul play. But the 26-year-old’s mother is urging police to reopen their investigation, saying it “doesn’t look like a normal situation.”

Bereaved mother Poornima Ramarao told Business Insider that a private autopsy commissioned by Balaji’s family and completed in early December produced concerning results. Now, they are working with an attorney to urge the department to conduct a “proper investigation.” 

“We want to leave the question open,” the bereaved mother, Poornima Ramarao, told the outlet. 

OPENAI WHISTLEBLOWER FOUND DEAD IN SAN FRANCISCO APARTMENT FROM APPARENT SUICIDE

The AI researcher’s death came months after he parted ways with Open AI and raised concerns about the company breaking copyright law in an October interview with The New York Times. He was named in a copyright lawsuit waged against the company by the New York Times which alleged that Microsoft and OpenAI used millions of published articles to inform its technology and began competing with the outlet as a result.

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On November 18, eight days before he was found dead, the outlet filed a letter in federal court that named Balaji as a person with “unique and relevant documents” that would be used in their litigation.

When he joined the company, his mother said, Balaji hoped that OpenAI’s software would be a benefit to society and was drawn to its open-source philosophy. 

The OpenAI logo on a laptop computer arranged in the Brooklyn borough of New York, US, on Thursday, Jan. 12, 2023. Microsoft Corp. is in discussions to invest as much as $10 billion in OpenAI, the creator of viral artificial intelligence bot ChatGPT, according to people familiar with its plans.  (Gabby Jones/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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But his perspective shifted, she said, after ChatGPT launched and the company became more commercially focused.

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Ramarao described the moment she saw medics approaching her son’s apartment and realized her son was dead.

“I was waiting to see medical help or nurses or someone coming out of the van,” she told the outlet. “But a stretcher came. A simple stretcher. I ran and asked the person. He said ‘we have a dead body in that apartment.’”

Balaji told the Times in August that he left OpenAI because he “no longer wanted to contribute to technologies that he believed would bring society more harm than benefit.”

“If you believe what I believe, you have to just leave,” he told the outlet. 

Balaji told the outlet that the repercussions of the technology would be far more “immediate” than he had initially feared.

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A laptop screen is seen with the OpenAI ChatGPT website active in this photo illustration on 02 August, 2023 in Warsaw, Poland. (Photo by Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images) (Photo by Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

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“I thought that AI was a thing that could be used to solve unsolvable problems, like curing diseases and stopping aging,” he said. “I thought we could invent some kind of scientist that could help solve them.”

But instead, he said, chatbots were beginning to threaten the livelihoods of individuals that wrote the digital data used to train those systems.

“This is not a sustainable model for the internet ecosystem as a whole,” he told the outlet. 

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He disagreed with assertions from Microsoft and OpenAI that their usage of preexisting online material fell under “fair use,” and therefore circumvented copyright laws.

“I was at OpenAI for nearly 4 years and worked on ChatGPT for the last 1.5 of them,” Balaji wrote in October on the social media platform X. “I initially didn’t know much about copyright, fair use, etc. but became curious after seeing all the lawsuits filed against GenAI companies.”

“When I tried to understand the issue better, I eventually came to the conclusion that fair use seems like a pretty implausible defense for a lot of generative AI products, for the basic reason that they can create substitutes that compete with the data they’re trained on,” his post continued.

OpenAI and Microsoft are currently facing several other lawsuits from media outlets who accuse OpenAI of breaking copyright law.

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Fox News Digital has reached out to the medical examiner and San Francisco Police.

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San Francisco, CA

Discovery Bay driver arrested for San Francisco fatal vehicle collision | Contra Costa Herald

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Discovery Bay driver arrested for San Francisco fatal vehicle collision | Contra Costa Herald


Killed pedestrian, struck 3 more people

By San Francisco Police Department

On May 25, 2026, at approximately 12:13 am, San Francisco Police officers responded to the area of 16th and Mission Streets regarding a vehicle collision.

Officers were advised that a collision occurred between a vehicle and a pedestrian.

Officers arrived on scene and located a pedestrian victim being treated by paramedics for life threatening injuries. Paramedics transported the victim to a local hospital.

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Despite lifesaving efforts of medical staff, the victim was later declared deceased at the hospital.

A preliminary investigation revealed that a vehicle collided with a pedestrian and struck three additional victims.

The three victims were medically assessed on scene for non-life-threatening injuries.

Through the course of the investigation, officers located the suspect vehicle and detained the occupant of the vehicle.

The Traffic Collision Investigations Unit (TCIU) responded to scene and conducted their investigation.

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Through the course of the investigation, TCIU investigators developed probable cause to arrest the driver identified as 57-year-old Samuel Powell of Discovery Bay on June 30, 2026.

Powell was arrested and charged for vehicular Manslaughter 192(c)(2) PC and the driver’s responsibility to exercise due care for the safety of any pedestrian within the roadway 21955(b)(3) CVC.

Although an arrest has been made, this remains an open and active investigation. Anyone with information is asked to contact the SFPD at 415-575-4444 or text a tip to TIP411 and begin the message with SFPD.

 



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Denver, CO

Nuggets Sign Marvin Bagley to 1-Year Deal: What It Means

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Nuggets Sign Marvin Bagley to 1-Year Deal: What It Means


After an extended wait of no activity from the Denver Nuggets in this year’s free agency period, the team has finally made its first new signing.

That signing just so happens to be the No. 2 pick from the 2018 NBA Draft, Marvin Bagley III.

According to ESPN‘s Shams Charania, the Nuggets and Bagley have agreed to a one-year, veteran minimum deal for the 2026-27 season, effectively providing some solid depth in the frontcourt.

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With Denver’s first free agency signing now officially in the books, here’s what the move to bring in Bagley might mean for the Nuggets moving forward into free agency and this offseason, as well as entering next season.

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Marvin Bagley Brings Frontcourt Depth to Denver’s Lineup

Bagley split his time between the Washington Wizards and Dallas Mavericks this past season to put together one of his better years of production in recent memory.

In the 60 combined games he played, Watson averaged 10.5 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 1.4 assists while shooting a career-high 61.8% from the field and 46.2% from three on a little less than one attempt per game.

Bagley’s a big who’s game centers more around his offensive skillset. He spent most of his time shooting last season at the rim or in the mid-range, shooting a stout 64.1% on two-pointers last season that can bring a bit of an interior presence into Denver’s frontcourt.

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Mar 27, 2026; Portland, Oregon, USA; Dallas Mavericks forward Marvin Bagley III (35) warms up before a game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Defensively, he leaves a little bit more to be desired. And he’s still not quite the most impressive three-point shooter, even coming off his most efficient season from deep.

But for the cost of a veteran minimum contract, he acts as a nice budget-friendly addition who can shoulder some of the load offensively, and has shown value as an offensive rebounder as well. It’s tough to find much better for the price Denver’s paying.

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While entering the league slotted in primarily as a power forward, it’s been in the past few seasons that Bagley’s settled in more as a full-time five; having spent 95% of his minutes during the 2025-26 campaign playing at the five.

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That might give you a bit of a hint as to how the Nuggets plan to use him this next season, though they might also have some stretches where he’s placed alongside Nikola Jokic at the four for a bit of a larger frontcourt lineup.

The Writing’s On the Wall for Jonas Valanciunas

Looking at what Bagley’s addition might mean for the Nuggets’ current roster, no one in the picture gets more impacted by Jonas Valanciunas.

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Valanciunas was Denver’s primary backup behind Jokic at the five last season following his trade from the Sacramento Kings, and entered this offseason with an uncertain future because of his contract situation.

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The veteran big man has an expiring $10 million contract heading into the 2026-27 season, but one that’s not fully guaranteed, giving the Nuggets the opportunity to release him and save $8 million, while incurring a dead cap hit of $2 million that can be stretched over multiple years.

Apr 20, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Tim Hardaway Jr. (10) and center Jonas Valanciunas (17) react in the first half against the Minnesota Timberwolves during game two of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
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Such a move can give the Nuggets further cap flexibility that they’ll need this offseason to re-sign key pieces like Peyton Watson and Spencer Jones, which to this point haven’t been done, but becomes a bit easier now that Denver can take that next step in pivoting off of Valanciunas.

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Perhaps Denver might also look deeper into a trade involving Zeke Nnaji, now that they’ve got a cheaper option in Bagley that might even sit ahead of him on the initial depth chart. However, it remains to be seen if the Nuggets have any takers on the two years remaining on his contract. To this point, they haven’t found anyone to bite.

When factoring in Valanciunas and Nnaji though, Bagley’s addition now brings the Nuggets to a total of 10 players signed onto traditional contracts for the 2026-27 season.

That leaves them with four open spots left to utilize in the days and weeks ahead. How they decide to use that space remains to be seen, but at the very least, the Nuggets’ long-awaited first offseason signing has now officially come to light.

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Seattle, WA

FOURTH OF JULY 2026: Here’s where Seattle Parks will leave the lights on longer

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FOURTH OF JULY 2026: Here’s where Seattle Parks will leave the lights on longer


(2024 reader photo of fireworks damage on Nino Cantu SW Athletic Complex turf)

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Here’s the annual announcement from Seattle Parks – we’ve excised the non-local parks:

Seattle Parks and Recreation will turn on field lighting on ballfields throughout the city on the evening of Friday, July 3 and Saturday, July 4 to protect the surfaces. The ballfield lights will be turned on at approximately 9 PM.

The lights will be turned on to discourage the use of fireworks. Fireworks are illegal in the city of Seattle and will destroy the artificial turf on the fields or surrounding facilities. The approximate replacement cost for the synthetic surface based on per average full-size field (110,000 square feet) is $1.2 million. All the fields have been renovated in the past several years and benefit field users including soccer, football, baseball, ultimate frisbee and lacrosse.

The fields will be monitored from 9 PM to 3 AM

Lights at the following synthetic fields will be turned off at 3 AM on July 3 and 4:

Delridge Playfield, 4458 Delridge Way SW
Hiawatha Playfield, 2700 California Ave. SW
South Park Playfield, 8319 8th Ave S
Walt Hundley Playfield, 6920 34th Avenue SW

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Lights will be turned off at the following grass fields at 11 PM on July 3 and 4:

West Seattle Stadium, 4432 35th Ave. SW

Comparing this to last year’s announcement, the lights will be on longer the night before the 4th, and the “monitoring” will be an hour later.





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