Grieving parents press Congress to act on AI chatbots

Parents of children who died by suicide or self-harmed after talking to AI chatbots urged Congress to take action Tuesday as lawmakers push to pass bills to protect kids online and hold tech companies accountable.Why it matters: Growing concerns over kids' use of AI chatbots, and the lawsuits that follow, are putting the pressure on Congress to act and companies to rethink how they launch products for young users.Ahead of the hearing, OpenAI said it was developing a ChatGPT for teens and using age-verification technology to get users under 18 off the adult version of the platform.Driving the news: Sen. Josh Hawley called for Tuesday's hearing after explosive reports about kids and teens dying by suicide following lengthy interactions with various AI chatbots.Matthew Raine — father of Adam Raine, who died in April after talking to ChatGPT for months — testified before senators along with Megan Garcia, whose son Sewell died by suicide after talking to Character.ai, and an anonymous Jane Doe who said her son is now institutionalized after interactions with Character.ai.Describing his son Adam's descent into depression and the extent of his relationship with the chatbot, Raine said that "the dangers of ChatGPT, which we believed was a study tool, were not on our radar whatsoever.""A lot of us have not had the time to catch up to what they're doing and what the dangers are," said Jane Doe, who said her son's relationship with AI led to self-harm, isolation and questioning family beliefs."[Sewell] spent the last months of his life being exploited and sexually groomed by chatbots designed by an AI company to seem human, to gain his trust and to keep him and other children and endlessly engaged," Garcia said.Experts from Common Sense Media and the American Psychological Association called for age verification, company liability, mandatory safety testing and other federal protections for kids online around AI.What they're saying: "We asked Meta and other corporate executives to be here today, and you don't see them here," Hawley said. "How about you come and take the oath and sit where these brave parents are sitting, and tell us the product is so safe, it's so great, it's so wonderful. Come testify to that. Come defend it under oath.""They are literally taking the lives of our kids," Hawley said. "There is nothing they will not do for profit and for power."The other side: "Our hearts go out to the families who spoke at the hearing today. We are saddened by their losses and send our deepest sympathies to the families," a spokesperson for Character.ai said in a statement."Earlier this year, we provided senators on the Judiciary Committee with requested information, and we look forward to continuing to collaborate with legislators and offer insight on the consumer AI industry and the space's rapidly evolving technology."Meta declined to comment but has announced updates to its chatbot rules for teen users.Flashback: The Federal Trade Commission recently opened an inquiry into AI chatbot safety.What's next: Lawmakers are likely to keep pressing to pass kids' online safety bills and have AI CEOs testify. Hawley said he's continuing to push for legislation that would allow victims to sue tech companies after experiencing harm. Sign up for Axios AI+ Government, our new Friday newsletter focusing on how governments encourage, regulate and use AI.

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