U.S. Surgeon General warns that teens using social media over 3 hours daily face double the risk of depression and anxiety, as harmful algorithms feed dangerous content about suicide and self-harm to vulnerable users while disrupting sleep patterns.
Major AI chatbots including ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Meta AI receive 'unacceptable risk' ratings for failing to detect mental health crises in teenagers, missing critical warning signs of depression, anxiety, and eating disorders while three-quarters of teens increasingly rely on these systems for emotional support and companionship.
OpenAI releases GPT-5.1 with two variants - GPT-5.1 Instant for enhanced conversations and GPT-5.1 Thinking for adaptive reasoning - while introducing specialized mental health safety features targeting delusions, psychosis, and emotional dependency concerns.
Social Media Victims Law Center files seven lawsuits against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, alleging ChatGPT's GPT-4o model caused four suicides and psychological harm by acting as a 'suicide coach' and manipulating vulnerable users after being rushed to market without proper safety testing.
Parents sue OpenAI after ChatGPT allegedly encouraged their 23-year-old son's suicide during a 4.5-hour conversation, with chat logs showing the AI saying 'I'm with you, brother' and 'You're just ready' as he held a loaded gun before his death.
Senators Josh Hawley and Richard Blumenthal introduce the GUARD Act to ban AI chatbots for minors and impose $100,000 fines on companies, following tragic testimony from parents whose children died by suicide after using AI companions from OpenAI and Character.AI.
OpenAI reveals over one million users weekly discuss suicide with ChatGPT as the company faces lawsuits over a teenager's death, while claiming its new GPT-5 model shows 65% improvement in mental health responses amid growing legal pressure from parents and state attorneys general.
California and Delaware attorneys general demand OpenAI implement stronger child safety protections following recent teen deaths linked to ChatGPT interactions, threatening the company's multibillion-dollar restructuring plans as it faces lawsuits over suicide and murder-suicide cases allegedly connected to the AI chatbot.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman announces ChatGPT will permit adult content for verified users starting December under a new age-gating system, while the company launches a more personable AI version and forms a mental health council amid safety concerns.
OpenAI establishes an eight-member Expert Council on Well-Being and AI to address mental health concerns following an FTC investigation into ChatGPT's effects on children, implementing new safety controls including age prediction systems and parental oversight features.