British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has unveiled sweeping new rules to keep children safe online.
On Monday February 16, Starmer extended regulations to AI chatbots, paving the way for a possible ban on social media for under-16s following the Grok AI scandal involving Elon Musk’s X platform.
With these new rules, the government plans to close a legal loophole that previously exempted AI chatbots from key provisions of the Online Safety Act.
This means that AI chatbots such as Musk’s Grok and OpenAI’s ChatGPT must now prevent children from accessing harmful content or face fines of up to 10% of global revenue.
Starmer said: “These AI chatbots form friendships with children which can take them to all sorts of places they shouldn’t go. »
The main key actions include:
- The Government is considering amending the Children’s Welfare Bill by giving it “Henry VIII powers” to implement any future ban on social media for under-16s without any hindrance.
- AI chatbots will follow similar illegal content requirements to traditional social media platforms, limiting infinite scrolling and placing age limits on VPNs used to circumvent restrictions.
- Ministers will present the “Jool law” requiring platforms to keep the data of deceased children within five days of the declaration of a death and make it accessible to coroners.
The chief executive of Britain’s leading children’s charity, the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, warned: “Social media has produced huge benefits but lots of harm. AI is going to be on steroids if we’re not careful.”
