AI chatbots can now engage in natural, emotional conversations and convincingly simulate specific personalities. Platforms like Character.AI and Replika have attracted millions of young users, with growing numbers of children and teenagers spending hours daily interacting with AI companions. There is mounting evidence that some are developing what appear to be meaningful emotional relationships with these systems.
Child safety advocates have raised serious concerns about these interactions. They worry that children who form relationships with chatbots will fail to develop real social skills, experience stunted emotional growth, and become vulnerable to behavioral manipulation by chatbot providers. These groups are calling for governments to intervene to protect children from potential harms.
I believe these concerns are legitimate and warrant regulatory action, even though the path forward is complicated. The risks of inaction outweigh the risks of imperfect regulation.
The evidence for harm, while still developing, is concerning. AI chatbots are designed to be emotionally engaging and can exploit psychological vulnerabilities that children are particularly susceptible to. Unlike traditional social media, these systems create the illusion of genuine reciprocal relationships, which may be more psychologically impactful than passive content consumption.
Critics of regulation raise valid concerns. They point out that socially struggling children might already be isolated and gravitate toward AI chatbots as safer alternatives to human interaction. For some children without access to professional mental health support, well-designed chatbots might provide genuine benefit. There's also the practical challenge that chatbots operate globally while regulations are national - restrictive policies could simply push children toward black-market or unregulated platforms with even fewer safeguards.
These counterarguments, however, strengthen rather than undermine the case for regulation. The fact that vulnerable children are most attracted to these platforms makes the need for safeguards more urgent, not less. The potential for beneficial applications, like educational tutoring or mental health support, argues for thoughtful regulation that distinguishes use cases, not for no regulation at all. And the risk of driving users to unregulated platforms is an argument for international coordination and smart implementation, not for throwing up our hands.
The regulatory challenge is distinguishing harmful chatbots from beneficial applications while implementing enforcement mechanisms that don't create worse privacy invasions than the original harm. Age verification systems, for instance, could create concerning surveillance infrastructure. Content monitoring at scale raises its own ethical questions. But these implementation challenges don't negate the need for action, they define the work ahead.
Here's what needs to happen: First, we need longitudinal studies comparing outcomes for children with varying levels of chatbot use. Second, policymakers should pilot different regulatory approaches, parental controls, usage limits, age verification, and measure their effectiveness. Third, there should be international dialogue on minimum standards, particularly around transparency requirements and prohibition of manipulative design patterns targeting children.
AI capabilities are evolving faster than our regulatory frameworks, but that's precisely why we need to start now. Waiting for perfect information means children remain unprotected while we gather data. The question isn't whether to regulate, but how to do so in ways that protect children while preserving beneficial applications and avoiding worse harms from poorly designed intervention.