OpenAI has launched ChatGPT for Teens, a version of its chatbot designed with additional safety measures and educational tools aimed at younger users. The release comes after years of lawsuits alleging that AI chatbots lacked sufficient safeguards, with cases citing teen suicides and other mental health concerns. The company announced the product on Monday, positioning it as a response to both safety criticisms and widespread concerns about ChatGPT-assisted cheating in schools.
The new offering includes a Study Mode feature that provides guiding questions and step-by-step support to help teens understand material rather than simply receiving quick answers. OpenAI says the teen experience will also include homework reminders that appear when a user appears to be attempting to cheat, prompting them to switch to Study Mode instead. The app supports quizzes and learning visualizations, and parents or guardians can control whether Study Mode is enabled by default, according to the company.
OpenAI states that the protections in ChatGPT for Teens are on by default and are designed to reduce exposure to harmful or developmentally inappropriate content. The measures are based on the company’s Under-18 Principles in its Model Spec, which OpenAI says were informed by developmental science and expert guidance. Family tools and parental controls introduced previously, such as safety notifications and Quiet Hours settings, will also be available to parents.
It remains unclear how easily teens might bypass these new restrictions, as young users are often skilled at circumventing parental controls and other digital limitations. The company has not yet faced strenuous independent testing of the new teen mode, so its real-world effectiveness is uncertain. Similarly, the announcement raises questions about why such protections were not included when ChatGPT first launched in late 2022, given that the chatbot has since grown to 900 million weekly users.
OpenAI also announced a partnership with CodeAI to help teens learn about AI, including how it works, how to direct or question it, and how to use it. For educators, the company already offers ChatGPT for Teachers, which provides schools with institution-managed access to the AI tool. The new teen-focused rollout does not appear to include any classroom-specific features beyond the existing teacher offering.
