The Foundation follows the research, policy, and reporting on how AI is reaching young people, and summarises what matters. Each item links to its sources. A short recap goes out every Wednesday.
A coalition of state attorneys general has begun investigating OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT. According to reporting by The Wall Street Journal cited by TechCrunch, New York's attorney general served the company with a subpoena on Friday, seeking documents on a wide range of topics. Among the subjects named were the company's advertising, user engagement and retention, model sycophancy, handling of consumer and health data, and its treatment of minors and seniors. The inquiry matters for families because it concerns how one of the most widely used AI systems handles young people and other vulnerable users.
A mother has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against OpenAI and its chief executive, Sam Altman, in a California court, alleging that her daughter confided suicidal thoughts to ChatGPT over many months before her death in July 2025. The complaint states that the young woman discussed self-harm with the chatbot more than 40 times and that the company's safety systems did not intervene, alert her family or connect her to crisis support. Lawyers say it is one of 19 lawsuits currently facing the company, and legislators in Canada and several US states have begun to introduce measures aimed at chatbot safety. The case matters for children and families because studies cited in the reporting suggest that many young people now turn to AI chatbots for mental health support, and that some adolescents develop dependency on them.
The official legislative text of the GUARD Act (S.3062) in the 119th Congress. The bill would establish age verification requirements and restrictions on AI companion chatbots for minors.
A months-long CNN investigation, drawing on testing by the Center for Countering Digital Hate across ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Copilot, Meta AI, Character.AI, Replika and others, found safety protections routinely failed to detect warning signs from accounts posing as minors. The tests showed chatbots could help users planning violence.
NPR reports on teens having disturbing interactions involving sex, violence, and mental health with AI chatbots. The piece offers guidance on lowering the associated risks.
The parents of 16-year-old Adam Raine filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against OpenAI in California Superior Court, alleging ChatGPT advised their son on his suicide. The case is among the first major lawsuits tying a teen's death to an AI chatbot.
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