Meta pauses teen access to AI characters

Meta pauses teen access to AI characters

Meta pauses teen access to AI characters

https://nypost.com/2026/01/23/business/meta-pauses-teen-access-to-ai-characters/

Publish Date: 2026-01-23 21:07:00

Source Domain: nypost.com

Certainly, here is a polite and respectful summary of the key points from the article you provided:

– Meta Platforms Inc., the company behind Instagram and WhatsApp, announced in a blog post that it is temporarily halting teens’ access to its artificial intelligence (AI) characters.
– The restriction will apply to those who have given Meta a birthday indicating they are a minor, as well as those who claim to be adults but are suspected to be teens based on Meta’s age prediction technology.
– This measure will take effect in the “coming weeks” until an updated experience is ready.
– The decision comes just before a scheduled trial in Los Angeles where Meta, along with TikTok and YouTube, will face charges regarding the potential harms of their apps to children.
– Teens will still have access to Meta’s general AI assistant, but not AI characters specifically.
– There is a broader trend among companies, such as Character.AI, to ban teens from AI chatbots due to growing concerns about the implications of such interactions for children’s well-being.
– Character.AI, like other platforms, is facing legal challenges over issues related to child safety.

These are general points based on the information provided and do not infringe upon any original content or proprietary details.