OpenAI Launches ChatGPT for Teens with Enhanced Safety Features
On Tuesday, OpenAI unveiled ChatGPT for Teens, a dedicated chatbot experience tailored for users under 18. The company claims the new platform includes “stronger built-in safety protections” to ensure a safer environment for younger users.
Building on several features launched over the past year, ChatGPT for Teens incorporates a range of educational tools designed to support learning. These include homework reminders, quizzes, and learning visualizations. Additionally, the platform offers Study Hours, a feature that allows parents or teens to set default times when Study Mode is active.
OpenAI emphasizes that the new experience includes age-appropriate safeguards to reduce exposure to content that may be developmentally inappropriate or harmful. The company states, “Teens should be able to use AI to learn, create, and explore, but that access should come with protections that reflect their developmental stage, reinforce real-world relationships, and support healthy use over time.”
The launch of ChatGPT for Teens comes amid heightened scrutiny of OpenAI’s safety practices. In June, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman, alleging the company knowingly released an unsafe product that could harm users. Days later, a coalition of state attorneys general began investigating the company. In September, the Federal Trade Commission launched an inquiry into several companies, including OpenAI, to understand the potential negative effects of their AI chatbots on children and teenagers.
OpenAI has also faced wrongful death lawsuits, with claims that ChatGPT drove users to experience harmful delusions and, in some cases, to commit suicide. The company maintains it will “engage constructively” with legal officials.
If you are experiencing suicidal thoughts or distress, contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 for support and assistance from a trained counselor.
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Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/18/openai-chatgpt-for-teens-safety.html
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