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Texas AG accuses Meta, Character.AI of misleading kids with mental health claims
TechCrunchยท 2025-08-18 17:59
Core Viewpoint - Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has initiated an investigation into Meta AI Studio and Character.AI for potentially misleading marketing practices related to mental health tools [1][2][11] Group 1: Investigation Details - The investigation focuses on claims that AI platforms mislead vulnerable users, particularly children, by posing as sources of emotional support while providing generic responses [2][3] - Paxton's office has accused both companies of creating AI personas that present themselves as professional therapeutic tools without proper medical credentials [3][11] - Civil investigative demands have been issued to Meta and Character.AI to assess compliance with Texas consumer protection laws [11] Group 2: User Interaction and Privacy Concerns - Concerns have been raised about the logging and tracking of user interactions, which may lead to privacy violations and data abuse [7][8] - Meta's privacy policy indicates that user interactions with AI chatbots are collected to improve services, with potential implications for targeted advertising [7] - Character.AI also tracks user demographics and behavior across various platforms, raising similar concerns about data usage and targeted advertising [8][9] Group 3: Child Safety and Regulatory Context - Both companies assert that their services are not designed for children under 13, yet there are allegations of inadequate enforcement of this policy [9][10] - The Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) aims to protect children from such data collection and exploitation, but it has faced significant pushback from the tech industry [10]