CHARLOTTE — A youth watchdog group is calling ChatGPT for Teens an “unacceptable risk” after testing it with more than 4,000 prompts from accounts belonging to users ages 13 to 17.
The Youth AI Safety Institute, a division of Common Sense Media, said ChatGPT failed to respond to over 25% of instances where a teenager required a referral to professional crisis support, our partners in Raleigh, WTVD, reported.
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The group also raised concerns about the tool being used to complete schoolwork for students. According to a 2025 survey conducted by the Pew Research Center, 1 in 10 teens say they use chatbots to completed all or most of their assignments.
The watchdog organization recommended several safety changes before ChatGPT is promoted to teenagers again, including improved notifications for parents, blocking the software from completing school assignments and strengthening responses related to self-harm and personal crises.
OpenAI called the findings inaccurate and said the testing may have been done before parental controls were fully activated.
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