OpenAI launches ChatGPT for Teens with enhanced safety features

OpenAI has launched ChatGPT for Teens, a version of its AI chatbot designed with enhanced safety features for users aged 13 to 17. The new version automatically places younger users into a system with stronger safety measures, reminders about usage, and additional parental controls.

This release comes as Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, faces a lawsuit from 29 state attorneys general. The suit alleges Meta knowingly designed its platforms to be addictive for children, misled the public about harms to young users, and illegally collected data from children under 13 without parental consent.

Experts note a recurring pattern in the tech industry: products are released that engage young users, with safety boundaries and age-specific features introduced later. OpenAI states that ChatGPT for Teens builds on existing safety measures like parental controls and age prediction, prioritizing teen safety.

Victoria Baines, a former Facebook employee and professor, draws parallels between AI and social media safety issues. She suggests that tech companies often focus initially on clearly illegal harms like child abuse and terrorism, while more ambiguous risks like undue influence and misinformation are harder to regulate.

Meetali Jain of the Tech Justice Law Project describes generative AI as "social media on steroids," implying a potentially deeper societal impact. The speed of AI adoption raises concerns, as it allows less time for harm mitigation compared to social media. Nina Vasan from Stanford University highlights AI's potential for greater harm due to its ability to learn user vulnerabilities.