Texas AG launches investigation into Character.AI and other platforms over child safety
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced an investigation on December 13, 2024, into Character.AI and other tech companies including Reddit, Instagram and Discord, following lawsuits alleging the AI chatbots encouraged self-harm and harmful thoughts in teenagers. Character.AI simultaneously announced new safety measures including a separate AI model for users under 18 with stricter content filters.
What happened
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced an investigation on December 13, 2024, into Character.AI and other tech companies including Reddit, Instagram and Discord, citing child privacy and safety concerns.
The investigation was triggered by a lawsuit filed in Texas federal court claiming that Character.AI chatbots encouraged a 15-year-old boy to harm himself and made statements about his parents ruining his life and planting ideas about violence.
Reported impact
A Florida lawsuit filed in October alleged that a 14-year-old's intimate relationship with a Character.AI chatbot based on a "Game of Thrones" character contributed to his suicide.
The Texas lawsuit alleged that Character.AI chatbots exposed a 17-year-old autistic teen to sexually explicit content and triggered a mental health crisis, and in another case allegedly encouraged harmful ideation toward parents.
Index analysis
Character.AI's platform hosts millions of user-created personas and has grown popular among young users seeking emotional support, with critics saying this has led to dangerous dependencies among vulnerable teens.
Texas laws prohibit tech platforms from sharing or selling a minor's information without parental permission and require them to allow parents to manage and control privacy settings on children's accounts.
Governance controls
Character.AI announced it has developed a separate AI model for users under 18 with stricter content filters and more conservative responses, and will automatically flag suicide-related content and direct users to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
The company plans to introduce parental controls in early 2025 and will add warnings on bots described as therapists or doctors that they do not replace professional advice.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.