Altman attack suspect Moreno-Gama had ‘mental health crisis’

A lawyer representing the man accused of throwing a lit Molotov cocktail at the driveway gate of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman‘s home last week said Tuesday that he suffered from a mental-health crisis.

Daniel Moreno-Gama, 20, was assigned a public defender team ahead of his hearing before Judge Kenneth Wine.

“Our defense team is just now beginning our investigation, and what’s becoming clear is that Daniel’s actions appear to have been driven by an acute mental health crisis,” San Francisco Deputy Public Defender Diamond Solange Ward said in the courthouse hallway.

Ward said Moreno-Gama has a history of autism and that the case is “clearly overcharged.”

“This case is a property crime at best,” she said. “No one was injured, and there appears to be some damage to a gate.”

Moreno-Gama allegedly threatened to burn down OpenAI’s headquarters last week because of his hatred for artificial intelligence technology.

San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins dismissed the claim as grasping for straws and said the office has “no evidence of him having a mental health issue.”

“It wouldn’t matter if this was a billionaire or CEO or any average San Franciscan,” Jenkins said.

Moreno-Gama, a Texas resident, was set to be arraigned on Tuesday in San Francisco Superior Court. His legal team asked to push the date until May 5, which the judge agreed to.

Wearing an orange jumpsuit, Moreno-Gama looked solemn during the brief legal proceedings.

He answered Wine’s question about whether he agreed to continue his arraignment at a later day with a simple, “Yes.”

He was then quickly ushered out of the courtroom.

Moreno-Gama is charged with attempted murder, attempted arson and exploding or igniting a destructive device with intent to murder.

He is separately charged by federal prosecutors with attempted damage and destruction of property by means of explosives and possession of an unregistered firearm.

San Francisco Police Department officers arrested Moreno-Gama on Friday and recovered a document in his possession that detailed his intentions, according to a complaint filed in San Francisco federal court on Monday.

In the document, Moreno-Gama expressed his aim to kill Altman and warned of humanity’s “impending extinction” from AI. He also listed the names and addresses of several additional AI executives, board members and investors, the complaint said.

Altman addressed the attack on his home in a blog post on Friday, and said it has been an “extremely intense, chaotic, and high-pressure few years.”

He shared a photo of his family and called for de-escalation of “the rhetoric and tactics” within the AI industry.

“We deeply appreciate how quickly SFPD responded and the support from the city in helping keep our employees safe,” OpenAI said in its statement on Friday. “The individual is in custody, and we’re assisting law enforcement with their investigation.”

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