Starting next week, Google will begin allowing children under the age of 13 who have parent-managed accounts to access its Gemini chatbot platform. According to a report from The New York Times, this service expansion targets families using Google’s Family Link, a suite of tools designed to help parents monitor and manage their children’s digital activities.
A spokesperson for Google told The Times that the Gemini chatbot offered to younger users will include tailored safety measures explicitly geared toward children. Additionally, Google clarified that data collected from interactions by users under 13 would not be leveraged to train its artificial intelligence models.
The move comes as competition intensifies among tech companies to attract younger demographics to AI-based services. Yet, despite the aggressive push from the industry, chatbots continue to face scrutiny regarding their utility, reliability, and potential risks, particularly for minors. Recently, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) urged governments worldwide to adopt regulatory frameworks aimed at safeguarding young people. UNESCO’s recommendations include strict age limits, robust user privacy protections, and well-defined guardrails around the use of generative AI technologies within educational environments.
