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
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
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