Snapchat is adding parental settings to prevent adolescents from using its AI chatbot. The updates will also let parents see their teenagers’ privacy settings and access Family Center, the app’s parental controls section.
Snapchat’s AI-powered chatbot My AI can now block adolescent discussions. Snapchat released My AI about a year ago and was criticized for not age-gating it since the chatbot was found to be talking to kids about cannabis scent and sex mood.
Snapchat claims the new limitation feature enhances My AI’s “protection against inappropriate or harmful responses, temporary usage restrictions if Snapchatters repeatedly misuse the service, and age-awareness.” 
Additionally, parents may now see their teenagers’ safety and privacy settings. A parent may check whether their adolescent can share their story with friends or a limited group. Parents should also check their teen’s app contact settings to see who can reach them. Parents may now check whether their adolescent is sharing their Snap Map location with friends.
Snapchat is making Family Center simpler to locate for parents who may not know about it. Parents may now access Family Center from their profile or settings.
In the blog post, Snapchat explained that the Family Center reflects real-world relationships between parents and teens, where parents can see who their teens are spending time with while respecting their privacy. “We worked closely with families and online safety experts to develop Family Center and used their feedback to regularly add features.”
Snapchat created the Family Center in 2022 in response to demands on social media companies to safeguard young users in the U.S. and overseas.
Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel will appear before the Senate on child safety on January 31 with X (previously Twitter), TikTok, Meta, and Discord. Committee members will question company leaders about their platforms’ online kid protection failures.
These improvements come two months after the European Commission sent official requests for information (RFI) to Snap and Meta regarding their social media protection efforts for children. TikTok and YouTube received similar demands from the Commission.
Snapchat and Meta both released kid safety features this week. The internet giant introduced automated content restrictions for underage Instagram and Facebook accounts. The accounts will instantly be blocked from viewing self-harm, graphic violence, and eating problem messages.
