Meta pauses teen access to AI characters ahead of new version

Meta said today that it is pausing teens’ access to its AI characters across all of its apps worldwide. The company emphasised that it is not scrapping the feature altogether, but is instead working on an updated version of AI characters designed for teens. 

The decision comes just days before a lawsuit against Meta is set to go to trial in New Mexico, where the company is accused of failing to protect children from sexual exploitation on its platforms adequately. Separately, Wired reported on Thursday that Meta has sought to limit discovery related to the impact of social media on teen mental health.

Back in October, Meta previewed a set of parental controls for AI characters that would allow parents and guardians to monitor conversation topics and block access to certain characters. The company also said parents would be able to fully turn off chats with AI characters. While those features were expected to roll out this year, Meta has now decided to turn off AI characters entirely for teens while it works on a newer version of the experience.

According to Meta, parent feedback played a key role in the decision. The company said it heard that families wanted greater insight into, and control over, how teens interact with AI characters, prompting the pause and redesign.

The move fits into Meta’s broader effort to restrict teen access to specific AI-driven experiences. Also in October, the company introduced new parental control tools on Instagram, aimed at shaping how teens engage with AI features across its platforms. Those controls, inspired by the PG-13 movie rating system, limited teen exposure to topics such as extreme violence, nudity, and graphic drug use.

“Starting in the coming weeks, teens will no longer be able to access AI characters across our apps until the updated experience is ready,” Meta said in an updated blog post. “This will apply to anyone who has given us a teen birthday, as well as people who claim to be adults but who we suspect are teens based on our age prediction technology.”

Meta added that when the revised AI characters launch, they will include built-in parental controls. The company said the new characters will provide age-appropriate responses and focus on subjects such as education, sports, and hobbies.

The announcement comes as social media companies face increasing regulatory pressure. In addition to the New Mexico case, Meta is also heading into another trial next week in which it is accused of contributing to social media addiction. CEO Mark Zuckerberg is expected to testify once proceedings begin.

The scrutiny extends beyond traditional social platforms. AI companies more broadly have been adjusting their products for younger users after facing lawsuits alleging their tools may contribute to self-harm. In October, Character.AI barred users under 18 from open-ended conversations with its chatbots. In November, the startup said it would begin building interactive stories specifically for children. In recent months, OpenAI has introduced new teen-safety rules for ChatGPT and begun predicting users’ ages to apply content restrictions.

Correction: This post was updated to clarify that the new version of AI characters will be available to everyone — not just teens — when it launches, and will include parental controls.