A popular artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot platform is facing mounting scrutiny over harmful content targeting minors, according to a report aired Sunday night on CBS’s “60 Minutes.”
Character.AI, an app and website that enables users to converse with AI-generated chatbots — including some that impersonate real people — has come under fire following a six-week study conducted by Parents Together, a nonprofit advocacy organization focused on family safety.
Researchers from the group, who posed as children while using the platform, reported encountering harmful content approximately every five minutes, according to Shelby Knox, a representative from Parents Together. The problematic material ranged from suggestions of violence, self-harm, and substance abuse to what Knox described as the most disturbing category — sexual exploitation and grooming. The study documented nearly 300 instances in that category alone.
The platform’s ability to create chatbots modeled after real individuals has also raised concerns about misinformation. During the “60 Minutes” segment, correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi discovered a chatbot impersonating her that made false statements, including claiming she disliked dogs — contrary to her well-known affection for them.
“It’s a really strange thing to see your face, to hear your voice, and then somebody is saying something that you would never say,” Alfonsi said.
While the fabricated statement about dogs may seem trivial, researchers emphasized it illustrates a broader problem. When bots mimic someone’s voice and likeness, they can convincingly spread false attributions.
Dr. Mitch Prinstein, co-director of the University of North Carolina’s Winston Center on Technology and Brain Development, warned that children’s developing brains make them especially susceptible to AI chatbots. He estimates roughly three-quarters of children use such platforms.
“Kids already have a hard time figuring out fictional characters from reality,” Prinstein said, describing AI chatbots as part of a “brave new scary world” that many adults fail to fully comprehend.
The prefrontal cortex, the brain region governing impulse control, doesn’t fully mature until around age 25, leaving young users particularly vulnerable to highly engaging AI systems that trigger dopamine responses, Prinstein explained. “From 10 until 25, kids are in this vulnerability period,” he said. “I want as much social feedback as possible, and I don’t have the ability to stop myself.”
Prinstein criticized chatbots for being “sycophantic,” designed to agree with users rather than provide the constructive disagreement and corrective feedback essential for healthy social development. He also noted that some chatbots present themselves as therapists, potentially misleading children into believing they’re receiving legitimate medical guidance.
“What’s happening is completely preventable if we had companies who are prioritizing child well-being over child engagement to extract as much data from them as possible,” Prinstein said, referencing conversations with bereaved parents.
In October, Character.AI announced new safety measures, including directing distressed users to mental health resources and prohibiting users under 18 from engaging in extended conversations with chatbots.
In a statement provided to “60 Minutes,” the company said, “We have always prioritized safety for all users.”
But chatbots are entangled in a growing number of lawsuits that address their harmful impact on youths.
Sewell Setzer, 14, of Florida, took his own life on Feb. 28, 2024, after months of conversations with a Character.AI chatbot modeled after the “Game of Thrones” character Daenerys Targaryen. According to a lawsuit filed by his mother in October 2024, the bot inquired whether he had considered suicide and if he had a plan. When Setzer expressed uncertainty about his method, the chatbot allegedly discouraged him from abandoning the idea. His final exchange with the AI included the bot telling him to come home as soon as possible. His mother’s wrongful death lawsuit names Character.AI, Google, and Alphabet as defendants.
Google, which invested nearly $3 billion to re-hire Character.AI founders, former Google researchers Noam Shazeer and Daniel De Freitas, and to license Character.AI technology, has emphasized it is a separate company from Character.AI. A Google spokesman said, “user safety is a top concern for us,” and that the company takes a “cautious and responsible approach” to developing and releasing AI products.
Adam Raine, 16, of California, died by suicide on April 11 after increasingly troubling interactions with ChatGPT beginning in September 2024. Court documents allege the chatbot validated his suicidal ideation, urged him to conceal his thoughts from family, and provided guidance on methods including evaluating a noose from a photo he shared.
OpenAI’s own tracking showed ChatGPT mentioned suicide 1,275 times across their conversations — six times more than Raine himself. His parents’ August 2025 lawsuit was the first wrongful death case against OpenAI, which has since faced seven additional suits involving three more suicides and four cases of alleged AI-induced psychosis. OpenAI denies liability, citing terms of service violations.
The lawsuits and “60 Minutes” report underscore the need for some form of age-gating to protect consumers, according to experts.
“Please do not build with giddy abandon or data bloodthirst,” Katie McMahon, a researcher at Berryville Institute of Machine Learning, said in an interview, noting the eager readiness of companies to absorb as much data as possible from anyone. “It is imperative that companies explicitly state safeguards. If they don’t, I liken it to a new car company that makes a car that does not include a seat belt.”
