ChatGPT for Teens promises safer AI. Will its safeguards work for Indian users?

Last week, OpenAI announced the launch of its latest offering: a version of ChatGPT dedicated exclusively for teenage users. By its admission, this is a natural progression. Teenagers are already using ChatGPT extensively, with OpenAI saying nearly nine in 10 teenage users turn to it for learning, information, skill-building or productivity in a given week. But their growing use of AI tools has also spurred concerns over how these systems respond to young users, particularly when conversations move beyond homework or information-seeking into emotional support, mental health and companionship. Crucially, the new offering is not a separate application or website. Teenagers continue to use the regular ChatGPT, but with additional, age-appropriate safeguards and features built in. These are automatically enabled when a user's stated or verified age, or OpenAI's age-prediction system, indicates that they are under 18. Story continues below this ad Despite this step, some crucial questions remain unaddressed: How does ChatGPT know it is talking to a teenager? Do these safeguards hold up in real conversations? And will they work equally for all teenagers? How does ChatGPT know it is talking to a teenager? Before these safeguards can come into play, ChatGPT first needs to identify whether the current user is an adult or a teenager. OpenAI does not allow children below age 13 to use ChatGPT. According to OpenAI, it uses information associated with an account, including a user's stated or verified age, as well as an age-prediction system that looks at signals such as how long the account has existed, the times of day it is typically used, general conversation topics, and patterns of use over time. Also Read | 'We want to empower parents': OpenAI on safety, privacy and ChatGPT for Teens In India, however, the relationship between a device, an account and the person using it is not always straightforward. The RATI Foundation's Ideal Internet 3.0 study, released in November…