Deeply troubled parents spoke to senators Tuesday, sounding alarms about chatbot harms after kids became addicted to companion bots that encouraged self-harm, suicide, and violence.
While the hearing was focused on documenting the most urgent child-safety concerns with chatbots, parents' testimony serves as perhaps the most thorough guidance yet on warning signs for other families, as many popular companion bots targeted in lawsuits, including ChatGPT , remain accessible to kids.
Mom details warning signs of chatbot manipulations
At the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism hearing, one mom, identified as "Jane Doe," shared her son's story for the first time publicly after suing Character.AI.
She explained that she had four kids, including a son with