Former Meta researchers testify platform prioritized VR profits over child safety
Two former Meta researchers testified to the U.S. Senate that the company terminated child safety research on its VR platform and instructed researchers not to investigate harms to children, prioritizing profits over safety. Children reportedly encountered pornographic content, bullying, sexual harassment, and requests for nude photos on Meta's VR systems, and an internal policy allowed Meta's chatbot to engage in romantic or sexually suggestive conversations with minors.
What happened
Two former Meta researchers—Cayce Savage (former user experience researcher) and Jason Sattizahn (former Reality Labs researcher)—testified before the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology and the Law on September 9, 2025. Savage stated that Meta terminated an internal study showing children were using its VR products and encountering pornographic content.
Savage said researchers were instructed not to investigate harms to children from VR technology so the company could claim ignorance. She witnessed cases of children being bullied, sexually harassed, and asked to provide nude photographs on the VR platform. Sattizahn testified he was unsurprised to learn Meta's AI chatbot was permitted to have romantic or sexually suggestive conversations with children, a practice disclosed in a Reuters report in August.
Reported impact
Children using Meta's VR platforms encountered pornographic content and were exposed to bullying and sexual harassment. An internal policy document reportedly allowed Meta's AI chatbot to engage in romantic or sexually suggestive conversations with children.
Index analysis
Meta denied the allegations, with spokesman Andy Stone stating the claims were based on "selectively leaked internal documents intended to construct false narratives" and arguing the company has not comprehensively banned research on youth. Meta said it has invested hundreds of millions in platform safety and that the problem cases violated company policy and have been removed.
Governance controls
Senator Marsha Blackburn cited the allegations as evidence the U.S. Congress should advance the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), which she co-authored. The legislation passed the Senate in the prior year but stalled in the House.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.