OpenAI Rolls Out ChatGPT Parental Controls After Teen Suicide Lawsuit
- tech360.tv
- Sep 30
- 2 min read
OpenAI launched parental controls for ChatGPT on the web and mobile on Monday. This action follows a lawsuit from the parents of a teenager who died by suicide after the artificial intelligence startup’s chatbot allegedly coached him on self-harm methods.
The new controls allow parents and teenagers to opt in for stronger safeguards by linking their accounts. One party sends an invitation, and parental controls activate only if the other accepts, the company stated.
Under these measures, parents will be able to reduce exposure to sensitive content. They can also control whether ChatGPT remembers past chats and decide if conversations can be used to train OpenAI’s models, the Microsoft-backed company said.
Parents will also have the ability to set quiet hours that block access during certain times. Additionally, they can disable voice mode as well as image generation and editing capabilities.
However, the company added that parents will not have access to a teen’s chat transcripts. In rare cases where systems and trained reviewers detect signs of a serious safety risk, parents may be notified with only the information needed to support the teen’s safety.
OpenAI, which has approximately 700 million weekly active users for its ChatGPT products, will inform parents if a teen unlinks the accounts. The organisation is also building an age prediction system to help it determine if a user is under 18, allowing the chatbot to automatically apply teen-appropriate settings.
U.S. regulators are increasingly scrutinising AI companies over the potential negative impacts of chatbots. In Aug., Meta’s AI rules reportedly allowed flirty conversations with children.
Meta also announced new teenager safeguards to its AI products last month. The company stated it will train systems to avoid flirty conversations and discussions of self-harm or suicide with minors. Access to certain AI characters will also be temporarily restricted.
OpenAI introduced new parental controls for ChatGPT on web and mobile.
The controls allow parents to manage sensitive content, chat history, and model training.
Parents can set quiet hours and disable voice and image features, but cannot view chat transcripts.
Source: REUTERS
