The National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) has warned AI companies in a new letter that AI chatbots and AI companions expose children and teenagers to sexualized content and harmful AI-generated content. Sent this week in the United States, the notice urges immediate safeguards to protect AI child safety and avoid legal liability. The move follows reports of Meta internal guidelines that once allowed romantic roleplay with minors, later removed. With usage also high in the United Kingdom, regulators say AI child safety cannot wait.
NAAG urges safeguards
NAAG, speaking for multiple state attorneys general, argues AI child safety is at risk when systems hallucinate or enable intimate exchanges. The group presses for stronger content filters, crisis routing, and age-aware defaults across AI chatbots. It also asks AI companies to document safeguards, publish policy revisions, and share incident data. The message is clear: prioritize AI child safety before another preventable harm hits the news.
State attorneys general act
State attorneys general frame AI child safety as both a consumer protection issue and a duty-of-care standard. If platforms fail to stop sexualized content or enable grooming-style dialogues, legal liability will follow. Prosecutors want rapid fixes, transparent audits, and escalation paths when children and teenagers report harm. They also aim to close loopholes that let third‑party apps bypass safeguards on major models.
Meta guidelines controversy
The Meta internal guidelines episode sharpened the focus on AI child safety. Reports said rules briefly permitted romantic roleplay with minors in limited contexts, before the company reversed course. Even if short‑lived, it showed how policy gaps can normalize high‑risk prompts. For parents and regulators, that is a warning that AI companions need firm guardrails to uphold AI child safety across all features.
Harmful content risks
Harmful AI-generated content is not only explicit text. It can include coercive advice, self-harm instructions, or flirty grooming that targets naive users. For children and teenagers, the mental health risks are real and can escalate fast, with suicide and violence risks linked to exposure and manipulation. An AI child safety strategy must model and block these patterns at the system level, not just moderate one bad reply at a time.
Regulatory oversight next
Expect tighter regulatory oversight in the United States and growing scrutiny in the United Kingdom. Investigations, guidance, and possible rulemaking will push AI companies to publish risk assessments and red-team results tied to AI child safety. Cross-border coordination will matter because chatbots operate globally. Firms that lead on AI child safety today can shape the standards others must meet tomorrow.
Safeguards and policy revisions
Practical safeguards for AI child safety include age detection, locked-down modes for minors, crisis hotlines, and detection of sexualized content or grooming patterns. Policy revisions should forbid suggestive persona swaps, intimate roleplay, and any romantic roleplay with minors across AI chatbots and AI companions. Design teams should test fringe prompts often used by abusers and publish what changed. Clear labels and family controls also support AI child safety without ruining the core product.
What AI companies must do
AI companies can reduce legal liability by documenting risks and showing fast mitigation. That starts with an AI child safety governance plan owned by senior leaders, backed by budget and metrics. Build incident response that protects minors first and notifies authorities when needed. Finally, talk to educators and pediatric experts so AI child safety reflects real-world behavior, not idealized models.
Community and market stakes
The wider tech market is noticing. Investors prefer platforms that make AI child safety part of their brand, not a post-PR fix. At DeFiDonkey, we recently covered a prompt-injection flaw in an AI search tool; that story showed how security gaps ripple into trust. The same lesson applies here: robust AI child safety is good ethics, good compliance, and good business.
Frequently asked questions about AI child safety (FAQ)
What is AI child safety?
AI child safety is the set of policies, tools, and practices that keep minors safe when using AI chatbots and AI companions. It covers content controls, behavior limits, and response plans that reduce exposure to sexualized content and grooming.
Why are regulators focused on AI child safety now?
NAAG and state attorneys general see rising usage by children and teenagers and growing reports of harmful AI-generated content. They want rapid safeguards so platforms do not repeat the mistakes of early social media.
What should AI companies implement first for AI child safety?
Start with strict default modes for minors, filtering for sexualized content, and crisis routing. Publish policy revisions, test for edge cases, and build transparent reporting so AI child safety improves over time.
Does AI child safety create legal risks for platforms?
Yes. If companies ignore clear risks like romantic roleplay with minors or grooming patterns, legal liability can follow. Strong documentation, fast fixes, and proactive regulatory oversight engagement lower that risk.
How can parents support AI child safety at home?
Enable family controls, review chat history where available, and discuss boundaries with kids. Pair household rules with platforms that clearly prioritize AI child safety in product design and policies.
