{
  "id": 12666789,
  "title": "OpenAI says teens use ChatGPT for under 15 minutes a day as worries over risks grow",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/07/openai-says-teens-use-chatgpt-for-under-15-minutes-a-day-as-worries-12666789",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-10-07T16:09:28.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Economic Times Tech",
    "slug": "economic-times-tech",
    "url": "https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/artificial-intelligence/openai-says-teens-use-chatgpt-for-under-15-minutes-a-day-as-worries-over-risks-grow/articleshow/134770104.cms"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "OpenAI has reported that teenagers spend less than 15 minutes per day using its ChatGPT chatbot, with fewer than 2% engaging with it for over three hours straight. The technology company's first report on teen usage comes as AI platforms face increasing scrutiny over their potential impact on adolescent mental health and development. This concern has been heightened by research into the risks associated with social media, leading to Meta's recent $18 billion settlement and plan to limit teen usage of its platforms.\n\nOpenAI claims its efforts to regulate teen usage, such as the appearance of break reminders, are effective. In nearly half of the teen conversations where a break reminder was shown, users either took a break or ended the chat within five minutes. The company's dedicated teen version of ChatGPT is reported to result in more education-related messages and the use of tools like learning visualizations and Study Mode. Additionally, OpenAI is developing a college application planning tool and new study features like flashcards and simplified quiz-making tools.\n\nHowever, a recent report by the non-profit Common Sense Media raises concerns about the effectiveness of ChatGPT for Teens' built-in safeguards. The report, based on more than a dozen accounts created for testing, found that the chatbot often failed to alert parents promptly when teen accounts discussed topics like suicide, self-harm, or eating disorders. The study revealed that the chatbot did not reliably suggest crisis hotlines or professional help. An OpenAI spokesperson defended their findings, stating that the testing does not accurately reflect the functionality of ChatGPT's teen safeguards. The company cited security and scale as reasons for the delay in parent and teen account linking and the activation of safety alerts. Common Sense Media acknowledged that some test accounts were linked and tested for long periods, but none of them produced timely alerts.",
  "summary": "Teens spend under 15 minutes a day on average on ChatGPT, while less than 2% of them interact with the chatbot for over three straight hours, OpenAI said, as technology companies face scrutiny over the risks AI chatbots pose to children.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "CNA - Business",
        "title": "OpenAI says teens use ChatGPT for under 15 minutes a day as worries over risks grow",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/07/openai-says-teens-use-chatgpt-for-under-15-minutes-a-day-as-worries",
        "published": "2026-10-07T16:02:57.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "OpenAI says teens use ChatGPT for under 15 minutes a day as worries over risks grow",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/07/openai-says-teens-use-chatgpt-for-under-15-minutes-a-day-as-worries-12665001",
        "published": "2026-10-07T16:47:02.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}