ChatGPT-maker OpenAI said Friday it had considered last year alerting Canadian authorities about a user who months later carried out one of the country’s deadliest school shootings.
In June 2025, OpenAI identified the account of 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar through its abuse detection system for “furtherance of violent activities.” The company said it debated whether to report the account to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) but decided at the time that the activity did not meet the threshold for law enforcement referral. The account was banned that same month for violating OpenAI’s usage policy.
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Last week, Van Rootselaar killed eight people in a remote area of British Columbia before dying from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. OpenAI explained that its threshold for notifying authorities involves cases with an imminent and credible risk of serious physical harm, which it did not find in this instance. The Wall Street Journal first reported the company’s revelation.
Following the shootings, OpenAI said its employees contacted the RCMP, providing information about Van Rootselaar and his use of ChatGPT. “Our thoughts are with everyone affected by the Tumbler Ridge tragedy. We proactively reached out to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and will continue to support their investigation,” an OpenAI spokesperson said.
RCMP Staff Sgt. Kris Clark confirmed OpenAI’s post-incident contact and said investigators are reviewing Van Rootselaar’s electronic devices, social media, and online activity. Authorities said he first killed his mother and stepbrother at home before attacking the school. He had prior mental health contacts with police, but his motive remains unclear.
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The small town of Tumbler Ridge, home to 2,700 people, is located over 1,000 kilometers northeast of Vancouver, near the Alberta border. The victims included a 39-year-old teaching assistant and five students aged 12 to 13. The attack was Canada’s deadliest since the 2020 Nova Scotia rampage, in which a gunman killed 13 people and set fires that claimed nine more lives.