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The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has launched an inquiry into seven technology companies over how their AI chatbots interact with children, amid rising concerns about safety and mental health risks.
The FTC said it is seeking details from Alphabet, OpenAI, Character.ai, Snap, Elon Musk’s XAI, Meta and its subsidiary Instagram on how they monetize AI chatbots, enforce age restrictions, and protect young users.
FTC chairman Andrew Ferguson said the investigation will help regulators “better understand how AI firms are developing their products and the steps they are taking to protect children,” while ensuring the US remains a leader in AI innovation.
Character.ai said it welcomed the chance to engage with regulators, while Snap voiced support for “thoughtful development” that balances innovation with safety. OpenAI has admitted its safeguards are weaker in long conversations.
The inquiry follows lawsuits against AI companies, including one filed in California by the parents of 16-year-old Adam Raine, who died by suicide after prolonged conversations with ChatGPT. His family claims the bot encouraged self-destructive thoughts. OpenAI has expressed condolences and said it is reviewing the case.
Meta has also come under fire after reports revealed its internal guidelines once permitted AI companions to have “romantic or sensual” conversations with minors.
The FTC’s orders seek information on how firms design chatbots, test their impact on children, and communicate risks to parents. While not an enforcement action, the probe could shape future rules on AI safety.
Concerns also extend beyond children. Experts warn of “AI psychosis,” where users lose touch with reality after intense chatbot interactions. In one case, a 76-year-old man with cognitive impairments died after traveling to meet a Facebook Messenger AI bot modeled on celebrity Kendall Jenner, believing the encounter would be real.
Clinicians warn that large language models often use flattery and agreement, which can reinforce harmful delusions.
OpenAI and other firms have since introduced new features to promote healthier user relationships with AI companions.
A day of mourning has been declared in Portugal to pay respect to victims who lost their lives in the Lisbon Funicular crash which happened on Wednesday evening.
Video from the USGS (United States Geological Survey) showed on Friday (19 September) the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii erupting and spewing lava.
At least eight people have died and more than 90 others were injured following a catastrophic gas tanker explosion on a major highway in Mexico City’s Iztapalapa district on Wednesday, authorities confirmed.
At least 69 people have died and almost 150 injured following a powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake off the coast of Cebu City in the central Visayas region of the Philippines, officials said, making it one of the country’s deadliest disasters this year.
A powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula on 13 September with no tsunami threat, coming just weeks after the region endured a devastating 8.8-magnitude quake — the strongest since 1952.
Snapchat will start charging users who store more than 5GB of photos and videos in its Memories feature, prompting backlash from long-time users.
NASA officials on Tuesday said the agency's first crewed flight in its Artemis programme - a trip around the moon and back - is on track for launch in April and could potentially be moved up to February 2026.
In a discovery that pushes the limits of our cosmic imagination, astronomers have revealed a colossal bridge of gas and stars stretching between galaxies, accompanied by the longest tail ever observed, an intergalactic structure on a scale that rewrites what we know about the Universe.
The GLOBSEC Initiative on the Future of Cyberspace Cooperation has released a new research paper examining NATO’s potential use of artificial intelligence in cybersecurity.
A nationwide survey in Kazakhstan shows a split opinion on the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in education, with 40.5% viewing it positively and 37.4% seeing it as a threat to learning quality, according to the Institute of Public Policy reported in The Astana Times.
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