OpenAI to launch ChatGPT for teens with parental controls as company faces scrutiny over safety

OpenAI on Tuesday announced it will launch a dedicated ChatGPT experience with parental controls for users under 18 years old as the artificial intelligence company works to enhance safety protections for teenagers.

When OpenAI identifies that a user is a minor, they will automatically be directed to an age-appropriate ChatGPT experience that blocks graphic and sexual content and can involve law enforcement in rare cases of acute distress, the company said.

OpenAI is also developing a technology to better predict a user's age, but ChatGPT will default to the under-18 experience if there is uncertainty or incomplete information.

The startup's safety updates come after the Federal Trade Commission recently launched an inquiry into several tech companies, including OpenAI, over how AI chatbots like ChatGPT potentially negatively affect children and teenagers.

The agency said it wants to understand what steps these companies have taken to "evaluate the safety of these chatbots when acting as companions," according to a release.

OpenAI also shared how ChatGPT will handle "sensitive situations" last month after a lawsuit from a family blamed the chatbot for their teenage son's death by suicide.

"We prioritize safety ahead of privacy and freedom for teens; this is a new and powerful technology, and we believe minors need significant protection," OpenAI CEO Sam Altman wrote in a blog post on Tuesday.

In August, OpenAI said it would release parental controls to help them understand and shape how their teens are using ChatGPT. OpenAI shared more details about those parental controls on Tuesday, and it said they will be available at the end of the month.

The company's upcoming controls will allow parents to link their ChatGPT account with their teen's via email, set blackout hours for when their teen can't use the chatbot, manage which features to disable, guide how the chatbot responds and receive notifications if the teen is in acute distress.

ChatGPT is intended for users who are ages 13 and up, OpenAI said.

"These are difficult decisions, but after talking with experts, this is what we think is best and want to be transparent in our intentions," Altman wrote.

If you are having suicidal thoughts or are in distress, contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 for support and assistance from a trained counselor

WATCH: FTC launches inquiry into AI chatbots acting as companions