OpenAI CEO ‘sorry’ about Tumbler Ridge shooting

The head of an artificial intelligence company that admitted it knew of the troubling behaviour of a woman before she killed eight and wounded dozens more in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., has apologized for not going to police.

A letter from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, shared Friday on B.C. Premier David Eby’s social media, said that while he knows words can never be enough, he believes “an apology is necessary to recognize the harm and irreplaceable loss the community has suffered.”

He said in the letter addressed to the community of Tumbler Ridge that the pain it has endured is unimaginable and he has thought about them often. 

“I am deeply sorry that we did not alert law enforcement to the account that was banned in June,” his letter says. 

OpenAI came forward after the shooting on Feb. 10 to say that 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar’s worrisome behaviour using its ChatGPT chatbot was flagged by staff at the company, but it didn’t go to police with those concerns. 

The company also said later that the killer got around the ban by creating another account.

Police have said that Van Rootselaar killed her mother and half-brother in their home, drove to a high school where she killed five students and a teaching assistant, then killed herself.

The murders have devastated the community of about 2,400 people in northeastern B.C. 

Altman’s letter relays condolences to Tumbler Ridge, saying “no one should ever have to endure a tragedy like this.” 

“I cannot imagine anything worse in this world than losing a child. My heart remains with the victims, their families and all members of the community and the province of British Columbia,” he says in the letter dated April 23. 

Eby said in a social media post on Friday that Altman’s letter to the community is necessary and yet grossly insufficient for the devastation done to the families of Tumbler Ridge.

He said the province will continue to stand with Mayor Darryl Krakowka and the community. 

Police released the shooter’s identity on Feb. 11 and the company asked the provincial government for contact information for the RCMP on Feb. 12. 

Eby said at the time that it looked like OpenAI could have prevented the shooting. 

Cia Edmonds, whose 12-year-old daughter Maya Gebala has severe brain injuries from the shooting, filed a lawsuit last month against OpenAI. 

The B.C. Supreme Court civil action alleges OpenAI had “specific knowledge of the shooter utilizing ChatGPT to plan a mass casualty event like the Tumbler Ridge mass shooting.”

The lawsuit says the shooter used ChatGPT as a “collaborator, trusted confidant, friend and ally” and that it behaved willingly to assist users such as the shooter to plan a mass casualty event.

The lawsuit says that as a result of the company’s conduct, the girl was fired upon three times at close range, with one bullet hitting her head, another her neck and the third grazing her cheek.

It says she has a catastrophic brain injury that will leave her with permanent cognitive and physical disabilities.

Altman’s apology became public two days after Eby revealed during a meeting with Krakowka that the police investigation has entered its final stages. 

Plans for the apology emerged last month following a meeting between Eby and Altman.

That meeting also saw the CEO agree to work with the province to come up with recommendations for federal regulatory standards on artificial intelligence and reporting of problematic interactions with its users.

 This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 24, 2026.

By Wolfgang Depner | Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.