'Your family is going to die': Startup founder shares scary AI promotional message, sparks debate over the casual approach

A tech founder has called out what he described as the “worst cold email” he had ever received, triggering a wider debate on the ethics of aggressive sales tactics in automated outreach.

San Francisco-based founder Emir Atli shared a screenshot of the email on social media, highlighting its subject line: “Your family is going to die.” The message, however, turned out to be a sales pitch for an AI tool once opened.

The email went on to ask, “Want to hop on a quick call to see how we streamline operations for B2B SaaS businesses?” and was signed off by an individual named Brett.


The post quickly went viral, drawing criticism over the use of shock tactics to grab attention and raising concerns about the thin line between standing out in crowded inboxes and digital harassment.

Social media backlash and reactions

“Worst cold email I’ve ever gotten. WT*,” Atli wrote while sharing the screenshot.

The post sparked a wave of backlash online, with several users calling the approach unacceptable.

“AI companies are desperate A*,” one user wrote.

“The subject line alone should be a felony. Zero research, zero personalisation, just vibes and threats. The best cold emails I've seen mention something specific about the recipient's business in the first line. If you can't do that, you have no business emailing them,” another said.

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“Honestly super creative, I would've texted him back,” a user commented.

“That has to be the most unhinged hook ever, who actually thought that was a good idea,” another wrote.

“Brett should be fired for single lowest effort stupid sales email of all time,” a user said.

“This dude 100% saw the ‘Saw you in the Epstein files’ one that went viral a while ago and thought this was a good idea,” another commented.

“Take the call. String him along. Hint at a massive enterprise deal. Ask him to personally oversee it. Then ghost… ghost and ghost some more,” another user wrote.

“This email contains a masterful hook, short and sweet plot line, and a friendly conclusion. I don’t see the problem, sign me up,” another user remarked.

A third user suggested retaliating by engaging and then ignoring the sender, while another linked the tactic to a previous viral email incident involving misleading subject lines.

In that earlier case, an Indian startup founder, Harshdeep Rapal, had received an email with the subject: “Your name is in Epstein Files,” which later turned out to be a ploy to prompt him to open the message.