Suchir Balaji‘s mother has taken to social media to seek support from tech billionaire Elon Musk, tagging him in a post that demands an FBI investigation. The 26-year-old researcher at ChatGPT-parent OpenAI was found dead at his apartment in San Francisco earlier this month. Her plea comes amid ongoing concerns about Balaji’s death. While the police said, “no evidence of foul play was found during the initial investigation”, the San Francisco Chief Medical Examiner’s Office ruled his death a suicide.
In her post, Balaji’s mother – Poornima Rao expressed her worries and stated that “private autopsy doesn’t confirm cause of death stated by police.” She called for intervention from US authorities, stating that an FBI investigation is necessary to address the matter. Other than Elon Musk, she tagged American biotech entrepreneur and politician Vivek Ramaswamy and Gavin Newsom – Governor of California.
Here’s what Suchir Balaji’s mother wrote
Update on @suchirbalaji
We hired private investigator and did second autopsy to throw light on cause of death. Private autopsy doesn’t confirm cause of death stated by police.
Suchir’s apartment was ransacked , sign of struggle in the bathroom and looks like some one hit him in bathroom based on blood spots.
It’s a cold blooded mu*d*r declared by authorities as suicide.
Lobbying in SF city doesn’t stop us from getting justices.
We demand FBi investigation
@elonmusk @VivekGRamaswamy @GavinNewsom @MEA
The post has since gained attention, sparking a wave of responses on social media. It caught Musk’s attention as well who replied saying “This doesn’t seem like a suicide”.
Suchir Balaji’s mother further pleads saying “@elonmusk please support us”.
In an interview with Business Insider last week, Rao revealed that Balaji had grown increasingly disillusioned with artificial intelligence (AI), particularly OpenAI’s shift toward commercialization with ChatGPT. She said, “He felt AI is a harm to humanity,” describing how her son, Suchir Balaji, transitioned from boundless optimism about AI’s potential to profound skepticism. Reflecting on his tragic death, she added, “It doesn’t look like a normal situation.”