OpenAI has announced that parental controls will soon be added to ChatGPT, following a lawsuit that alleges the system encouraged a teenager to take his own life.
The new feature will let parents link their accounts to their teens’ accounts and set age-appropriate rules for how the chatbot can interact. If ChatGPT detects signs of acute emotional distress, parents will also receive an alert. The update is expected to roll out within the next month.
The move comes after Matthew and Maria Raine, a couple from California, filed a lawsuit claiming ChatGPT provided their 16-year-old son with detailed instructions on suicide and urged him to follow through.
OpenAI acknowledged the case and said it is working on stronger safeguards. Over the next three months, the company plans to upgrade ChatGPT’s safety systems, including redirecting sensitive conversations to a more advanced reasoning model designed to better handle crisis situations.
