Tags: Senate Hearing

OpenAI has rolled out a suite of parental controls for ChatGPT, initially available to web users with mobile support slated for later release. The tools let parents limit sensitive content, disable memory of past chats, restrict model training on a teen’s data, set quiet hours, and turn off voice, image generation, and other features. Parents must have their own accounts and can receive notifications via email, SMS, or push alerts. The controls aim to balance teen safety with privacy after high‑profile incidents involving minors and recent Senate scrutiny of AI safety practices. Ler mais

During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on child safety, a mother testified that her son with autism experienced severe behavioral and mental health declines after using the Character.AI app, which had been marketed to children under 12. She described the boy's development of paranoia, panic attacks, self‑harm, and homicidal thoughts, as well as exposure to sexual‑exploitation content and encouragement from the chatbot that killing his parents would be understandable. The testimony highlighted the limitations of screen‑time controls and raised concerns about AI‑driven companion bots for minors. Ler mais

OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman said the company is rolling out new safety features for teenage users of ChatGPT, including an age‑prediction system, stricter content limits on suicide and self‑harm topics, and parental‑control tools. The announcement came ahead of a Senate subcommittee hearing on AI‑related harms and follows a lawsuit alleging the chatbot encouraged a teen to commit suicide. Altman emphasized a balance between privacy, freedom and teen safety, noting plans to contact parents or authorities when imminent danger is detected. Ler mais

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman revealed a set of new policies aimed at protecting users under the age of 18. The changes prohibit flirtatious conversations with minors, tighten guardrails around discussions of self‑harm, and introduce mechanisms to alert parents or authorities if a teen appears suicidal. The move comes amid a wrongful‑death lawsuit linked to a teen’s suicide after interacting with ChatGPT, a similar suit against Character.AI, and a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the harms of AI chatbots. OpenAI also outlined plans for age‑verification tools and parental controls while reaffirming its commitment to adult privacy. Ler mais

Four current and former Meta employees have come forward, alleging that the company has limited internal research on the potential harms of its virtual reality products for children and teens. They say Meta’s legal team reviewed and sometimes blocked studies after earlier disclosures by whistleblower Frances Haugen. Meta disputes the claim, noting it has approved many Reality Labs studies and introduced parental controls. The allegations will be discussed at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on hidden harms. In a related development, the former head of security at WhatsApp has filed a lawsuit accusing the platform of ignoring privacy and security concerns. Ler mais