OpenAI wants to "treat adult users like adults" and revealed plans to allow a wider range of content, including erotica, on its popular chatbot, ChatGPT.
On Tuesday, October 14, the tech giant CEO, Sam Altman, shared on X that upcoming versions of the popular chatbot would enable it to behave in a more human-like way; however, "only if you want it, not because we are usage maxxing".
The move could potentially help OpenAI attract more paying subscribers and will be rolling out in December 2025.
It would also likely intensify pressure on lawmakers to introduce tighter restrictions on chatbot companions.
Changes announced by the company came after it was sued earlier this year by parents of a US teen who took his own life.
OpenAI previously made ChatGPT "pretty restrictive to make sure we were being careful with mental health issues".
Sam said the company has now been able to mitigate the serious mental health risks and has new tools allowing it to "safely relax the restrictions in most cases".
"In December, as we roll out age-gating more fully and as part of our 'treat adult users like adults' principle, we will allow even more, like erotica for verified adults," he said.
Critics say OpenAI's decision to allow erotica on the platform shows the need for more regulation at the federal and state levels.
Jenny Kim, a partner at the law firm Boies Schiller Flexner, shared her reservations about the decision, questioning how the chatbot is going to make sure children are not able to access that feature of ChatGPT.
"OpenAI, like most of big tech in this space, is just using people like guinea pigs," said Kim.
A survey published this month by the nonprofit Centre for Democracy and Technology (CDT) found that one in five students report that they or someone they know has had a romantic relationship with AI.
On Monday, California Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill passed by the state legislature that would have blocked developers from offering AI chatbot companions to children unless the companies could guarantee the software wouldn't breed harmful behaviour.
Newsom said it was "imperative that adolescents learn how to safely interact with AI systems" in a message that accompanied his veto.
