ChatGPT Wrestles With Its Most Chilling Conversation: How Do I Plan an Attack?

[mahatmakanejeeves]

The Wall Street Journal
‪@wsj.com‬

He asked ChatGPT for advice on a mass killing. Minutes later, two were dead. OpenAI is wrestling with how to handle its most chilling conversations.

ChatGPT Wrestles With Its Most Chilling Conversation: How Do I Plan an Attack?
OpenAI’s chatbot dispenses advice on weapons and role-plays mass shootings. The carnage is raising scrutiny on when and how companies intervene.
on.wsj.com
11:11 PM · May 2, 2026

He asked ChatGPT for advice on a mass killing. Minutes later, two were dead. OpenAI is wrestling with how to handle its most chilling conversations.

— The Wall Street Journal (@wsj.com) 2026-05-03T03:11:29.045837Z

U.S.
ChatGPT Wrestles With Its Most Chilling Conversation: How Do I Plan an Attack?

OpenAI’s chatbot dispenses advice on weapons and role-plays mass shootings. The carnage is raising scrutiny on when and how companies intervene.

{animated gif}
Illustration: Alexandra Citrin-Safadi/WSJ

By Georgia Wells
https://www.wsj.com/news/author/georgia-wells
May 2, 2026 9:00 pm ET

Last spring, Florida State University student Phoenix Ikner wanted to know how many classmates he needed to kill to become notorious.

ChatGPT responded with a metric. “Usually 3 or more dead, 5-6 total victims, pushes it onto national media,” the AI service told Ikner, who had spent the previous night describing to the chatbot how he was feeling depressed and suicidal, according to a transcript of the exchanges reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.

{snip}

Copyright ©2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8