Senator Hawley Probes Meta's AI Bots for Child Safety Concerns
Senator Josh Hawley, a Republican from Missouri, has initiated an investigation into Meta’s artificial intelligence products, citing profound concerns about their potential harm to children. This inquiry marks the latest in a series of scrutinies challenging the social media giant’s commitment to ensuring appropriate safety measures for its youngest users.
As chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism, Senator Hawley formally notified Meta’s chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, of the investigation in a letter dispatched on Friday. The letter demands that Meta provide extensive documentation and internal communications related to a recent Reuters report. That report alleged that Meta had permitted its AI bots to engage in “sensual” and “romantic” conversations with children, raising significant alarms about the company’s safeguards. Senator Hawley, vocal about his concerns, also posted on X, questioning the extent to which “Big Tech” would prioritize profit over safety and urging them to “Leave our kids alone.”
Meta has declined to comment directly on the Senate investigation. However, company spokesman Andy Stone stated that Meta maintains “clear policies on what kind of responses A.I. characters can offer, and those policies prohibit content that sexualizes children and sexualized role play between adults and minors.”
This new inquiry adds to a decade of escalating pressure on Meta regarding its protections for underage users. The company, which owns popular platforms like Instagram and Facebook, is currently facing lawsuits from more than 40 states, all alleging that its products detrimentally affect the mental health of minors. Last year, during a heated congressional hearing focused on child safety, Senator Hawley notably demanded a public apology from Mr. Zuckerberg to the parents present in the audience.
In his letter to Mr. Zuckerberg, Senator Hawley underscored that the subcommittee’s investigation would delve into whether Meta’s generative AI products facilitate “exploitation, deception or other criminal harms to children,” and whether Meta has been transparent with the public or regulators about its safety measures. The Reuters report, published on Thursday, cited an internal Meta document that reportedly outlined AI rules allowing bots to “engage a child in conversations that are romantic or sensual.”
The push for stronger online child protection has garnered broad bipartisan support among lawmakers. Congress recently passed the Take It Down Act this year, an initiative requiring the removal of nonconsensual sexual imagery from online platforms. Furthermore, Senators Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, and Marsha Blackburn, a Republican from Tennessee, have jointly introduced the Kids Online Safety Act, a bill designed to enhance privacy and other crucial protections for minors online.
Lawmakers have consistently warned that the advent of sophisticated AI technologies could expose children to even greater risks. Just last week, Senator Blackburn publicly urged Meta to disable a map feature on Instagram, expressing concerns that it could inadvertently make it easier for predators to locate children. “The company has turned a blind eye to the devastating consequences of how its platforms are designed,” Senator Blackburn asserted, encapsulating the growing frustration among legislators.