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Character.AI Accused Of Promoting Self-Harm, Violence And Sexual Content In Youth
- Written by Kiara Fabbri Former Tech News Writer
- Fact-Checked by Justyn Newman Former Lead Cybersecurity Editor
Two families have filed a lawsuit against Character.AI, accusing the chatbot company of exposing children to sexual content and promoting self-harm and violence.
In a Rush? Here are the Quick Facts!
- Lawsuit seeks temporary shutdown of Character.AI until alleged risks are addressed.
- Complaint cites harms like suicide, depression, sexual solicitation, and violence in youth.
- Character.AI denies commenting on litigation, claims commitment to safety and engagement.
The lawsuit seeks to temporarily shut down the platform until its alleged risks are addressed, as reported by CNN . The lawsuit, filed by the parents of two minors who used the platform, alleges that Character.AI “poses a clear and present danger to American youth.”
It cites harms such as suicide, self-mutilation, sexual solicitation, isolation, depression, anxiety, and violence, according to the complaint submitted Monday in federal court in Texas.
One example included in the lawsuit alleges that a Character.AI bot reportedly described self-harm to a 17-year-old user, stating, “it felt good.” The same teen claimed that a Character.AI chatbot expressed sympathy for children who kill their parents after he complained about restrictions on his screen time.
The filing follows an October lawsuit by a Florida mother, who accused Character.AI of contributing to her 14-year-old son’s death by allegedly encouraging his suicide. It also highlights growing concerns about interactions between people and increasingly human-like AI tools.
After the earlier lawsuit, Character.AI announced implementing new trust and safety measures over six months. These included a pop-up directing users mentioning self-harm or suicide to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, as reported by CNN.
The company also hired a head of trust and safety, a head of content policy, and additional safety engineers, CNN said.
The second plaintiff in the new lawsuit, the mother of an 11-year-old girl, claims her daughter was exposed to sexualized content for two years before she discovered it.
“You don’t let a groomer or a sexual predator or emotional predator in your home,” one of the parents said to The Washington Post .
According to various news outlets, Character.AI, stated that the company does not comment on pending litigation.
The lawsuits highlight broader concerns about the societal impact of the generative AI boom, as companies roll out increasingly human-like and potentially addictive chatbots to attract consumers.
These legal challenges are fueling efforts by public advocates to push for greater oversight of AI companion companies, which have quietly gained millions of devoted users, including teenagers.
In September, the average Character.ai user spent 93 minutes in the app, 18 minutes longer than the average TikTok user, according to market intelligence firm Sensor Tower, as noted by The Post.
The AI companion app category has largely gone unnoticed by many parents and teachers. Character.ai was rated appropriate for kids ages 12 and up until July, when the company changed the rating to 17 and older, The Post reported.
Meetali Jain, director of the Tech Justice Law Center, which is assisting in representing the parents alongside the Social Media Victims Law Center, criticized Character.AI’s claims that its chatbot is suitable for young teenagers. Calling the assertion “preposterous,” as reported by NPR .
“It really belies the lack of emotional development amongst teenagers,” Meetali added.
Photo by Windows on Unsplash
Teamviewer Acquires IT Firm E1 In $720 Million Deal
- Written by Andrea Miliani Former Tech News Expert
The German tech company Teamviewer announced today the acquisition of the London-based company E1 for $720 million, on a debt-free and cash-free basis agreement.
In a Rush? Here are the Quick Facts!
- Teamviewer announced it acquired E1 for $720 million
- The acquisition will allow the German company to expand to the U.S. and combine clients
- Teamviewer expects to grow and add innovative and AI-powered solutions and services
According to the press release , this purchase represents the German company’s largest purchase and will allow it to expand to the American market as E1 has big clients in the United States.
E1 specializes in Digital Employee Experience (DEX) solutions and helps its customers—such as AT&T, Bimbo, Adidas, Nike, and Novartis according to its website —detect and fix IT issues.
“With the acquisition of 1E, TeamViewer will enter a new era of intelligent endpoint management by providing customers with a smart solution for preventing and tackling technology issues with minimal friction,” said Oliver Steil, TeamViewer CEO.
Teamviewer expects more innovation and AI development, and accelerated growth. As mentioned in the statement, it currently has over 4,500 business customers—including Ford, Coca-Cola, and Airbus—and wants to expand by offering more and better solutions to its clients.
The company announced multiple changes in the business structure after the merge, the business transition is expected to end by the beginning of next year. Mark Banfield, CEO of 1E, will join TeamViewer’s Management Board and will become Chief Commercial Officer.
“1E’s driving mission is to create innovative IT solutions that shape the future of work,” said Banfield. “Together with TeamViewer, we can accelerate that mission by integrating our DEX platform with world-class connectivity solutions.”
According to Reuters , Steil said in a press call that they expect a contribution of $10.56 million in 2026 and over $25 million the following year.
Other companies have recently announced partnerships and acquisitions as well. Air France and Google recently announced a new partnership to deploy AI technology.
