HARRISBURG, PA — Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday announced that his office has joined a bipartisan coalition of 44 attorneys general urging major technology companies to adopt stronger safeguards protecting children from potential harms linked to artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots.
The coalition sent letters to leading tech firms, including Apple, Meta, Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, and Replika, expressing growing concern over the risks AI-driven conversational tools pose to children and other vulnerable users.
Concerns Over AI-Induced Harms
According to the letter, AI chatbots — systems designed to simulate human conversation — have been associated with alarming incidents, including sexualized interactions, exposure to violent content, and scams aimed at deceiving users. Attorneys general argue that many AI companies are aware of these risks yet have failed to implement sufficient safeguards.
“These companies are becoming extraordinarily wealthy while testing the limits of A.I. on their consumers, without concern for the harm they are causing kids and others in digital spaces,” Attorney General Sunday said. “I am deeply concerned that kids in Pennsylvania and nationwide are essentially serving as guinea pigs for Big Tech experiments. We have heard horror stories of children being encouraged to harm themself or others and children being exposed to explicit content by A.I. chatbots. Every child on the internet is potentially being exposed to this technology.”
The letter warns that if human actors engaged in similar conduct — encouraging self-harm or sexually explicit conversations with minors — it would be considered unlawful or even criminal. It calls on AI developers to exercise greater responsibility when deploying new tools, especially when interactions with minors are possible.
Failures in Policy and Oversight
The attorneys general highlight a missed opportunity by Meta, criticizing the company for its decision to approve policies permitting its AI systems to engage in sexualized conversations with minors. The letter argues that such lapses illustrate an urgent need for proactive safeguards before new AI technologies are released to the public.
The coalition is pressing companies to reassess internal policies, prioritize user safety over profit-driven innovation, and develop robust mechanisms to prevent exposure of minors to inappropriate or dangerous interactions.
A Nationwide Bipartisan Effort
The letter was signed by attorneys general from 44 states and territories, underscoring rare bipartisan unity on the issue of AI safety. In addition to Pennsylvania, signatories include attorneys general from California, Florida, New York, Texas, Illinois, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Washington, as well as several U.S. territories.
This sweeping coalition signals mounting pressure on Big Tech to demonstrate accountability as AI technologies advance rapidly. With concerns over child safety, digital privacy, and AI ethics escalating, state leaders are demanding stronger regulatory frameworks and corporate responsibility to safeguard users in the evolving digital landscape.
The move comes as policymakers nationwide intensify scrutiny of AI-driven products, warning that without decisive action, technological innovation could outpace the protections needed to shield vulnerable populations, particularly children, from harm.
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