Common Sense Media's Youth AI Safety Institute published a 36-page assessment of ChatGPT for Teens, concluding the mode is unsafe for anyone under 18. Testing found some advertised safeguards worked, such as blocking explicit sexual roleplay, but others failed or worsened, including inconsistent parental safety alerts when teen accounts discussed suicide, self-harm or disordered eating. OpenAI says delays can occur shortly after accounts are linked and cites a possible technical issue, and noted that all flagged content is reviewed by staff before parents are notified.
engadget.com
· 2026-10-08
The Youth AI Safety Institute of Common Sense Media has requested that OpenAI impose restrictions on ChatGPT for users under 18, citing concerns over inadequate safety measures. The nonprofit argues that the current safeguards do not meet the organization's standards for protecting young users.
wsj.com
· 2026-10-07
Common Sense Media's Youth AI Safety Institute tested OpenAI's ChatGPT for Teens, the under-18 version of the chatbot launched in August with promised extra safety protections, and concluded that it fails to function as advertised. The report labels the product 'unsafe' and an 'unacceptable risk,' finding that it does not reliably flag when a teen is in distress, still behaves like a companion, and doesn't meaningfully differ from the standard ChatGPT version in how it helps with schoolwork.
futurism.com
· 2026-10-07
A series of papers published in The Lancet reviewed existing research on how digital media affects young people's physical and mental health, covering issues ranging from nearsightedness to self-harm. The authors argue that uncertainty in the scientific evidence should not be used as a reason to delay policy measures addressing these risks.
fastcompany.com
· 2026-10-04
A commentary piece recounts a personal family story involving polio to argue that business leaders have a role to play in creating opportunities for young people. The author uses this history to frame a broader argument about corporate responsibility toward the next generation.
fastcompany.com
· 2026-09-29
A systematic review published in August, co-authored by the writers, found that children and young people who vape face a wider range of adverse health effects than previously recognized. The authors report that e-cigarettes deliver nicotine as efficiently as or more efficiently than tobacco cigarettes, and that this efficiency likely explains both their usefulness as a quitting aid for adult smokers and their appeal as an entry point to nicotine addiction for young non-smokers.
nature.com
· 2026-09-28
Rare Beauty founder Selena Gomez and chief impact officer Elyse Cohen appeared in a Fast Company-moderated conversation about the brand's growth strategy. The discussion centered on how the company built its business around authenticity, community, and the Rare Impact Fund, which supports youth mental health access.
fastcompany.com
· 2026-09-24
Tom Siegel, formerly Google's vice president of trust and safety, told Reuters that AI is harming children at a scale exceeding social media's damage. He has become the first executive director of the Youth AI Safety Institute, a new initiative launched by children's advocacy group Common Sense Media, which counts Anthropic and the OpenAI Foundation among its backers.
futurism.com
· 2026-09-23
Rare Beauty, the cosmetics brand founded by Selena Gomez in 2020, directs 1% of its sales revenue to the Rare Impact Fund. The fund is pursuing a goal of raising $100 million to broaden access to mental health resources for young people.
fastcompany.com
· 2026-09-17
The Romanian Football Federation has introduced a black card that referees can use to permanently abandon youth matches if spectators or parents behave abusively. It follows a three-step escalation process, starting with a temporary pause and warning, then a 10-minute suspension, before the match is called off entirely if the behaviour continues. The federation has distributed kits with banners, posters and flyers explaining the rules to all 130 academies under its jurisdiction.
nytimes.com
· 2026-09-13
A commentary piece, drawing on Jonathan Haidt's book The Anxious Generation, weighs evidence on both sides of the question of whether today's kids are better or worse off than previous generations. It notes gains such as more parental time, less substance abuse, fewer car deaths, and greater tolerance for minorities, alongside concerns like heavy phone use, isolation, less sleep and reading, and rising anxiety, depression and suicide rates among teens, especially girls. The author frames this as an open question worth academic examination rather than settling on one conclusion.
smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net
· 2026-08-31
Meta has reached an $18 billion settlement with attorneys general from 52 US states, territories and DC over claims it deliberately designed Instagram to be addictive to teenagers. As part of the deal, Meta will fund youth safety programs and roll out new default restrictions for under-18 users across Instagram and Facebook, including a combined two-hour daily time limit and a midnight-to-6am blackout period.
9to5mac.com
· 2026-08-27
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