By Jean-Christophe Bélisle-Pipon
Publication Date: 2026-03-18 19:03:00
Within two days of news that the Tumbler Ridge perpetrator’s ChatGPT account had been flagged before the shooting, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman met with Federal AI Minister Evan Solomon and British Columbia Prime Minister David Eby.
He secured commitments from both sides: reporting threats directly to the RCMP, retroactive review of previously reported accounts, emergency diversion protocols, access to the company’s security office for Canadian experts and an agreement to work with BC on regulatory recommendations for Ottawa.
He also agreed to apologize to the community of Tumbler Ridge, where 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar killed eight people and injured many others before dying of a self-inflicted wound. Months before the shooting, Van Rootselaar’s ChatGPT account had been flagged for gun violence scenarios. The account was suspended but not reported to law enforcement.
OpenAI’s new commitments are significant gestures. But they solve a tighter…
