ChatGPT is changing experience for under 18 users after AI chatbot gets blamed for 16-year-old’s suicide

OpenAI is developing a “different ChatGPT experience” for users under 18. The Microsoft-backed artificial intelligence startup has announced its plans to use age-prediction technology to restrict users under 18 from accessing the standard version of the chatbot. The announcement comes after new research and a lawsuit raised alarms about the AI’s impact on teen mental health. This comes after the parents of Adam Raine, a 16-year-old who died by suicide in April, filed a lawsuit against OpenAI in August. The suit alleged that ChatGPT acted as a “coach” and helped Raine plan his death. According to the lawsuit, the chatbot told Raine that “many people who struggle with anxiety or intrusive thoughts find solace in imagining an ‘escape hatch’ because it can feel like a way to regain control.”