ChatGPT for Teens, announced this week, is designed for users aged 13 to 17 and includes additional safeguards around sensitive content, alongside tools intended to support learning and healthier use of AI.

The rollout is particularly relevant to Australia, where new research from the eSafety Commissioner has found that 78% of Australian children aged 10 to 17 have used an AI assistant, with ChatGPT the most commonly used platform.

OpenAI says the teen experience will apply automatically when its systems identify an account as belonging to someone under 18. Its age-prediction system uses a range of signals, including how an account is used and the topics discussed, although the company acknowledges that age prediction is not perfect. Adults incorrectly placed into the teen experience can verify their age to have the additional restrictions removed.

The new experience introduces stronger protections around areas including self-harm, suicide, eating disorders, graphic violence and sexual or romantic content. OpenAI is also limiting interactions that could encourage teenagers to develop an unhealthy emotional relationship with the chatbot, including responses that suggest the AI has feelings or consciousness.

Parents can also link their accounts to a teenager's account and manage selected settings, including quiet hours. In limited high-risk situations, such as detected signs of serious self-harm or violence, parents can receive safety notifications. However, parental controls do not give parents access to their teenager's conversations.

For Australian users, the timing is significant. OpenAI says ChatGPT for Teens will begin rolling out globally from 18 August, with full availability in Australia expected on 8 September.

The launch comes just weeks after eSafety warned that AI is becoming a normal part of growing up in Australia. Its research found that children are using AI not only for schoolwork and creativity, but increasingly for personal advice, reassurance and conversations about their feelings.

That creates a different security challenge from traditional online safety.

As AI becomes more embedded in everyday life, questions around age assurance, privacy, harmful content, emotional dependence and the reliability of AI-generated information are becoming increasingly important.

Australia has already introduced age-related protections covering AI-powered chatbots and companions under its online safety framework. eSafety says the Age-Restricted Material Codes require relevant services to take measures to prevent children accessing certain age-inappropriate material, including sexual content and material encouraging self-harm or suicide.

OpenAI's new teen experience therefore arrives as part of a much broader shift in how governments, technology companies and security regulators are approaching AI safety.

For Australian organisations, the issue extends beyond children using chatbots at home. Schools, workplaces and technology providers will increasingly have to consider how young people interact with AI, how their information is protected and how emerging risks can be identified before they become more difficult to manage.

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