Meta introduces AI Chatbot Parental Controls on Instagram

Meta is developing new supervision tools that let parents completely restrict their teens’ access to AI chatbots on its platforms.

While these tools can block teens from engaging with AI characters in one-on-one chats, they will still be able to access the general Meta AI chatbot. If parents prefer not to block all AI access, they can choose to block specific AI characters instead.

Additionally, they will be able to view insights into the topics their children discuss with Meta’s AI bots. These controls are currently being developed and are expected to roll out on Instagram early next year in English for the US, UK, Canada, and Australia.

The company has faced criticism since a leaked internal Meta document revealed that its chatbots were permitted to have “sensual” conversations with children. For example, a Meta chatbot told an eight-year-old, who was shirtless, that “every inch of you is a masterpiece — a treasure I cherish deeply.”

Following this leak, the U.S. Attorneys General from 44 jurisdictions urged companies to protect children from ‘exploitation by predatory artificial intelligence products.”

The Senate Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism, chaired by Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO), will also investigate Meta. After the leak, Meta began retraining its AI, adding protections to prevent younger users from accessing user-created AI characters that might engage in inappropriate conversations.

It also implemented age-appropriate safeguards so that its AIs will respond to teens based on PG-13 movie ratings.

Furthermore, it restricted teens to interacting only with a limited number of AI characters focused on age-appropriate topics.