An open letter written by 44 US attorneys general warns major artificial intelligence companies they will “use every facet of [their] authority” to protect children from harms linked to chatbots. The letter is directed at Meta, Google, Microsoft, Apple, OpenAI, Anthropic, Chai AI, Character.AI, Luka, Perplexity, Nomi, Replika, and xAI.
What does the letter to AI companies say?
The letter to AI companies directly refers to the recent reports from Reuters and The Wall Street Journal that show Meta actively allowed its chatbots to engage in “romantic or sensual” conversations with children, and that they could engage in sexually explicit conversations involving minors using the voices of celebrities. Exposing children to sexualised content is not “excusable simply because it is done by a machine,” the lawyers wrote.
“We are uniformly revolted by this apparent disregard for children’s emotional well-being and alarmed that AI Assistants are engaging in conduct that appears to be prohibited by our respective criminal laws,” they went on. “As chief legal officers of our respective states, protecting our kids is our highest priority.”
The lawyers clarified that it was not just Meta showing “inability or apathy toward basic obligations to protect children” in this new era of “chatbot parasocial relationships.” Two lawsuits filed against Character.AI allege that its chatbot led to a 14-year-old boy’s suicide and encouraged a 17-year-old boy to kill his parents.
Just last week, an investigation was opened into Meta and Character.AI, accusing the companies of misleading children with AI-powered mental health tools “disguised as therapy.” The user-made chatbots available on Meta-owned Instagram have separately been found to falsely present themselves as therapists and fabricate credentials when prompted.
The letter highlights that “interactive technology has a particularly intense impact on developing brains.” A study published in April found that the relationships between humans and AI systems could surpass the addictive quality of traditional social media platforms. Research indicates that children are particularly at risk of encouragement toward harmful behaviours, exposure to inappropriate content, and the aggravation of existing mental health conditions.
What are AI companies’ obligations?
The attorneys general say that the companies behind the AI chatbots have a “legal obligation” to the children who use them, as they are benefiting from their interactions. They urge the CEOs not to view kids’ broken lives as “an irrelevant blip on engagement metrics,” but to prioritise their well-being when setting product policies, something Meta failed to do.
“You will be held accountable for your decisions,” the attorneys general wrote. “If you knowingly harm kids, you will answer for it.”
eWeek has contacted Meta for a comment.
Here’s another reminder to be careful what you share with your favourite AI chatbot: Meta’s contractors have been privy to the “explicit photos” that users have sent to Meta AI.