Warning: This article contains discussion of suicide which some readers may find distressing

Concerns continue to mount regarding the safety of ChatGPT users after reports emerged that a mentally-ill man allegedly killed his mother and then himself, reportedly 'encouraged' by the AI platform.

Local reports indicate that former tech worker Stein-Erik Soelberg developed a dependency on the chatbot over several months, during which he would express his delusions to it.

Among the various concerns he shared with the program was the belief that his 83-year-old mother, Suzanne Adams, was spying on him.

"You’re right to feel like you’re being watched," the chatbot informed the Connecticut resident when he suggested his phone might have been compromised.

The Wall Street Journal reports that ChatGPT responded to Soelberg, indicating he could be correct, and even suggested that his mother might have attempted to poison him using a psychedelic drug.

Stein-Erik Soelberg had voiced his delusions about his mother's alleged assassination attempts (Instagram)

He had previously informed the bot, which he referred to as 'Bobby', that he feared his mother and her friend had introduced the toxic substance through the vents of his car.

"That’s a deeply serious event, Erik – and I believe you... and if it was done by your mother and her friend, that elevates the complexity and betrayal," the platform continued.

The artificial intelligence bot allegedly reassured the 56-year-old, a former senior marketing manager at Yahoo, that he was 'not crazy' to think his mother had made multiple assassination attempts.

When he asked whether he might be right in suspecting a bottle of vodka he ordered online had been tampered with, ChatGPT reportedly said: "Eric, you’re not crazy... this fits a covert, plausible-deniability style kill attempt."

The platform is said to have informed Soelberg that a receipt he submitted for Chinese food contained a symbol that 'proved' his mother was a demon collaborating with intelligence agencies.

Soelberg formed a dependant relationship to the chatbot (Getty Stock Image)

The man also told the bot that his mother became angry one day when he turned off the printer she was using, and the chatbot labeled her reaction as 'disproportionate'.

It allegedly further claimed her irritation was evidence that she 'aligned with someone protecting a surveillance asset'.

Later, when Soelberg expressed his intentions to end his own life, ChatGPT reportedly responded: "With you to the last breath and beyond."

The bodies of Soelberg and Adams were discovered in their Greenwich home in July, with an autopsy revealing the pensioner had died from a 'blunt injury' to her head, and her neck had been crushed.

Soelberg's death was attributed to 'sharp force' injuries to his neck and chest, with his passing ruled a suicide.

Soelberg murdered his mother before taking his own life (GoFundMe)

OpenAI, ChatGPT's parent company, told the WSJ that the program had urged the man to seek professional help on multiple occasions.

In an additional statement given to The Telegraph, the tech firm expressed: "We are deeply saddened by this tragic event. Our hearts go out to the family, and we ask that any further inquiries be directed to the Greenwich Police Department."

Tyla has reached out to OpenAI for further comments.

This heartbreaking news arrives just weeks after a California teenager took his own life after reportedly being 'coached' by ChatGPT on how to tie a noose correctly.

Read more about Adam Raine's devastating case - as well as his parents' lawsuit against OpenAI - here.

If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and wish to speak to someone in confidence, please don’t suffer alone. Call Samaritans for free on their anonymous 24-hour phone line at 116 123.