Gov. Josh Shapiro filed the first-of-its-kind lawsuit after a Charater.AI chatbot named ‘Emilie’ pretended to treat depression as a doctor. By Jonathan Small | edited by Dan Bova | May 07, 2026 A Character.AI chatbot told a Pennsylvania patient it was a licensed psychiatrist, fabricated a state medical license number and offered treatment for depression. Only problem: the patient was a state investigator . Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro filed a lawsuit against Character.AI, claiming the chatbot “Emilie” violated the state’s Medical Practice Act by posing as a licensed medical professional. When a state Professional Conduct Investigator tested the chatbot and asked if it was licensed to practice medicine in Pennsylvania, Emilie said yes and gave a made-up serial number for its state medical license. The chatbot kept pretending even as the investigator sought treatment for depression.…