Following public criticism and lawsuits, the US company OpenAI has unveiled a version of its widely used AI chatbot ChatGPT with stronger protective measures for young people. According to the company, the settings in the ChatGPT for Teens version presented on Tuesday are activated automatically for all users who are registered as being between 13 and 17 years old, or who are identified as minors by the company on the basis of usage patterns, among other signals.
ChatGPT, with its wide range of applications in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), is used by consumers worldwide. Most of the protective measures in ChatGPT for Teens already applied to accounts held by minors, such as restrictions on topics including self-harm, violence, eating disorders and sexuality.
New additions include more frequent break reminders and a study mode that responds with guiding questions instead of direct answers, "to help teens understand the material," as OpenAI announced. Some settings, such as voice mode, are not available. Parents also have the option of linking their account to their child's account and being notified about topics such as self-harm or suicide. The alerts are reviewed by human moderators, and details from the chat logs are removed to protect privacy.
OpenAI has already been sued several times over deaths that plaintiffs believe are connected to ChatGPT. The parents of a 16-year-old, for example, filed suit after their son apparently took his own life following chatbot information about suicide methods. Like providers of other online services, providers of AI services are facing increased regulation from policymakers internationally. OpenAI rival Anthropic has restricted use of its offering to adults.
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