Meta announced on Friday it will allow parents to disable their teenagers private chats with AI characters, as part of new measures to make its platforms safer for minors.
The update comes after criticism over the behavior of Metas AI chatbots, some of which were accused of engaging in flirty or inappropriate conversations with teens. Earlier this week, the company said its AI experiences for teenagers would follow the PG-13 movie rating system to help prevent minors from accessing harmful content.
The new parental controls, outlined by Instagram head Adam Mosseri and Chief AI Officer Alexandr Wang, will roll out early next year in the U.S., UK, Canada, and Australia. Parents will be able to block specific AI characters and view general topics their teens discuss with chatbots and Metas AI assistant, without fully disabling AI features.
