21st August 2026 – (Florida) A former analyst at Goldman Sachs, Darren Zhou, aged twenty-five, has been sentenced to eight years’ probation in Florida following an investigation that began when OpenAI alerted the FBI to his disturbing conversations with ChatGPT. Over several months, Zhou reportedly used the chatbot to repeat and rehearse violent plans against his ex-girlfriend, including threats to sexually assault and kill her – threats which police and the courts found to be highly detailed and deliberate rather than mere emotional outbursts.
The authorities’ involvement began in March, shortly after Zhou’s six-month relationship ended with the woman, then twenty-one. During exchanges on ChatGPT, Zhou described to the AI a series of scenarios including waiting for his former girlfriend in the gym car park with flowers and, if she refused to reconcile, intending to shoot her before turning the gun on himself. The content of these threats escalated further, with Zhou outlining intentions of sexual violence, holding her captive, and carrying out fatal harm if police intervened. He later revealed his intentions to extend threats to her family members in messages to the chatbot.
OpenAI reported the content to the FBI, and six days prior to Zhou’s arrest, the FBI contacted the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office with records of two months’ worth of Zhou’s chat history. After deputies conducted a welfare check, the woman detailed Zhou’s jealous and erratic behaviour that had led to their breakup, which had taken place over the phone due to her concerns about his reaction. She provided investigators with screenshots of harassing, insulting, and threatening messages Zhou continued to send after the breakup, often from numbers he generated using various apps. Authorities confirmed the severity of the case, noting that the threats extended well beyond vague or impulsive remarks.
Zhou was arrested in May and released after two days upon posting one hundred thousand dollars’ bail, before being formally charged with aggravated stalking, written threats to kill, and the illegal use of a phone. On 13th August, he pleaded guilty to all counts, securing a plea deal with prosecutors that spared him prison time and a felony conviction. Circuit Judge Scott Suskauer noted that the outcome took into consideration the victim’s agreement with the terms, and accordingly withheld adjudication, sentencing Zhou instead to eight years of probation.