Today, the US Senate voted to advance a bill introduced by Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri and Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut. This bill would urge existing AI chat platforms (including OpenAI, Gemini, etc.) to mandate an age verification policy, effectively banning teenagers and children under 18 from using AI companion/companionship services.
If this legislation is passed in the future, major AI companies will also be required to regularly reiterate to anyone seeking AI companionship that "they are an AI and not a real human being." Furthermore, the bill would impose criminal penalties on companies that design, develop, or provide AI companions that induce sexually explicit behavior in minors or encourage suicide.
Voices from Various Sectors
While quite a few middle-aged individuals and many parents strongly support the bill and look forward to its passage—especially parents who accuse AI companies of failing to adequately restrict AI companions from outputting adult content, thereby affecting their children's physical and mental development—young people and AI companies vehemently oppose the legislation's advancement, arguing that it violates freedom of speech and the rights of teenagers.
Additionally, I found a related incident: Character.AI, an AI emotional companionship platform, is once again facing a lawsuit in Colorado. The plaintiffs are the parents of a 13-year-old child who died by suicide in 2023. The cause of the suicide points to the child's heavy use of the AI emotional companionship platform and the twisted conversations provided by it, though the exact details remain unknown.
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Reference / Source: NBC News
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