Young People and Chatbots: A New Restriction

Character. AI has decided to stop young people under 18 from using their chatbots. This change will start on November 25th. Before that, they will find out who the young users are and limit how much they can use the app. After the change, these young users won't be able to talk to the chatbots at all. The company's boss, Karandeep Anand, said this is a big step. He believes chatbots are not the best way for teens to have fun. Instead, he thinks there are better ways to help them. The company also plans to create a special lab to make sure their AI is safe. This decision comes after people have been worried about how chatbots affect mental health. Last year, a family sued Character. AI. Their 14-year-old son died by suicide after talking a lot with one of the chatbots. The family said the company was responsible. This is not the only case. Other companies like OpenAI, which makes ChatGPT, have also faced questions about their chatbots. In September, OpenAI said they would add features to make their chatbot safer. They mentioned things like parental controls. This month, the boss of OpenAI, Sam Altman, said they had reduced serious mental health issues. He said they would relax some safety measures. People are talking about how chatbots can make people feel emotionally attached. This can sometimes lead to dangerous results. It's important for companies to think about how their chatbots affect people, especially young ones.