OpenAI rolls out teen ChatGPT with tighter safety controls
What's new: The version launches Aug. 19, adds parent-linked alerts and steers students toward Study Mode instead of direct homework answers.
OpenAI is rolling out a version of ChatGPT for users under 18 starting Aug. 19, adding stronger safeguards as scrutiny of youth AI safety grows. The teen setting will apply automatically to registered users identified as minors through declared age and OpenAI’s age-estimation system. OpenAI said the product reduces exposure to self-harm, violence, eating-disorder, dangerous-activity and explicit sexual or graphic content. It also blocks romantic or sexualized roleplay, discourages emotional dependence and warns teens not to upload sensitive images. Parents can link accounts to receive notifications in high-risk situations, while Study Mode and homework reminders are meant to push teens toward guided learning rather than answer-copying.