ChatGPT for teens: OpenAI makes AI less ‘human’ in new safety update

New ChatGPT safety features for teens include quiet times, study hours and reminders that the chatbot is AI, not a person.

Portrait of teenage boy using laptop computer at home.

Getty/LuckyDuck

Published: August 18, 2026 at 3:13 PM

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OpenAI is rolling out a new set of safety features designed specifically for teenagers using ChatGPT, including tools to help them take breaks and reminders that they are interacting with AI.

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New teen accounts will also be able to switch off ChatGPT’s human-like voice response, in a move designed to minimise the impression that the chatbot is a person.

The company said the changes were intended to give young users protections that reflect their age and support healthy use of the technology.

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What new safety features will teens get?

Teen accounts will become the default for users who identify themselves as teenagers when signing up, as well as for people OpenAI identifies as being under 18 - although they have not explained in detail how they will identify users who are under 18.

Under-13s are not allowed to use ChatGPT.

For teenagers, the new features include:

OpenAI said teenagers’ use of AI “should come with protections that reflect their developmental stage, reinforce real-world relationships, and support healthy use over time.”

Parents could receive alerts about eating disorder content

One of the more significant changes for parents is the addition of eating disorder-themed prompts to the list of potentially harmful requests that can trigger an alert.

OpenAI says alerts sent to parents with linked accounts will be reviewed by a human before being shared. The company aims to get alerts to parents within an hour of the request being made.

The firm said its approach would focus on “moments when offline support may matter most."

Parents should also be aware that the new safety measures are designed to support, rather than replace, real-world relationships and adult guidance.

ChatGPT will remind teens to take a break

Teenagers will be able to schedule ‘quiet times’, when they will not be able to use ChatGPT, as well as setting specific hours for Study Mode.

Study Mode was introduced for students last year and is designed to help them work through schoolwork rather than simply providing an answer. OpenAI says nine in 10 young people who use ChatGPT do so to help with learning.

The latest changes come amid wider concerns about how children and teenagers interact with increasingly human-like AI systems, including fears that some users could become convinced that AI tools are sentient. OpenAI says its latest changes are not a response to a particular incident involving children believing ChatGPT is alive.

Why are parents being asked to think about AI use?

The new safeguards come as schools, parents and technology companies continue to work out how AI should fit into children’s lives.

There is currently no bespoke AI regulation for children in the UK. The government has previously considered restrictions on AI chatbots for under-18s alongside wider changes relating to children’s use of social media.

Other major AI companies have taken different approaches. Anthropic’s Claude remains restricted to adults, while Google’s Gemini has also previously had restrictions around children’s access.

For parents, the new ChatGPT features offer some practical controls, but they also underline the importance of talking to children about what AI is, what it can and cannot do, and when it is better to step away from the screen.

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