ChatGPT introduces parental controls next month: Here’s what parents should know – Diario AS
ChatGPT has exploded into our lives, and that of our children.
In response to a harrowing incident involving a teenage user, OpenAI has taken huge steps to roll out parental controls and enhance safety features for younger users of ChatGPT. Given the recent blame has escalated, the company is reshaping how its AI engages with teens, aiming to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
Last spring, a 16-year-old in California tragically took their own life after months of intense interaction with ChatGPT, a relationship that was said to have become unhealthily emotional. The user’s parents have since filed a lawsuit alleging that the chatbot advised the teenager on his suicide, instead of intervening with crisis resources.
“These steps are only the beginning,” OpenAI wrote in a blog post on Tuesday. “We will continue learning and strengthening our approach, guided by experts, with the goal of making ChatGPT as helpful as possible.”
In light of this, OpenAI is launching new parental controls within approximately a month: parents can link their accounts to those of teens aged 13 and older, with a company spokesperson saying: “ChatGPT includes safeguards such as directing people to crisis helplines and referring them to real-world resources.”
“While these safeguards work best in common, short exchanges, we’ve learned over time that they can sometimes become less reliable in long interactions where parts of the model’s safety training may degrade. Safeguards are strongest when every element works as intended, and we will continually improve on them, guided by experts.”
Away from parental oversight, OpenAI is enhancing its technical safeguards. New “reasoning models” using a method called deliberative alignment will handle sensitive dialogues — chat sessions hinting at emotional or mental health distress—more carefully and reliably.
These initiatives are part of OpenAI’s broader 120-day plan to roll out several improvements, with ongoing iteration and transparency emphasised throughout.
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