Megan Garcia stands next to a picture of her son Sewell Setzer III at her home in Orlando, Florida on October 9, 2025. When tragedy struck Megan Garcia's life, she couldn't have known her story would become an early warning that generative AI chatbots could pose a deadly danger to teenagers. Her 14-year-old son, Sewell, had fallen in love with a "Game of Thrones"-inspired chatbot on Character.AI, a Silicon Valley startup that allows usersmany of them young peopleto interact with beloved characters as friends or lovers. Garcia became convinced AI played a role in her son's death after discovering hundreds of exchanges between Sewell and the chatbot, based on dragon-riding Daenerys Targaryen, stretching back nearly a year. Garcia's son was the first in a series of suicide reports that burst into public consciousness this year, sending OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, and other AI giants scrambling to reassure parents and regulators that the AI boom is safe for kids. (Photo by Gregg Newton / AFP) (Photo by GREGG NEWTON/AFP via Getty Images)