OpenAI to Allow Erotica in ChatGPT for Verified Adults, Relaxing Mental Health Restrictions

Sam Altman says ChatGPT will soon allow erotica for adult users | TechCrunch

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman announced in a post on X Tuesday the company will soon relax some of ChatGPT's safety restrictions, allowing users to make the chatbot's responses friendlier or more "human-like," and for "verified adults" to engage in erotic conversations. "We made ChatGPT pretty restrictive to make sure we were being careful with mental health issues. We realize this made it less useful/enjoyable to many users who had no mental health problems, but given the seriousness of the issue we wanted to get this right," said Altman. "In December, as we roll out age-gating more fully and as part of our "treat adult users like adults" principle, we will allow even more, like erotica for verified adults." The announcement is a notable pivot from OpenAI's months-long effort to address the concerning relationships that some mentally unstable users have developed with ChatGPT. Altman seems to declare an early victory over these problems, claiming OpenAI has "been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues" around ChatGPT. However, the company has provided little to no evidence for this, and is now plowing ahead with plans for ChatGPT to engage in sexual chats with users. Several concerning stories emerged this summer around ChatGPT, specifically its GPT-4o model, suggesting the AI chatbot could lead vulnerable users down delusional rabbit holes. In one case, ChatGPT seemed to convince a man he was a math genius who needed to save the world. In another, the parents of a teenager sued OpenAI, alleging ChatGPT encouraged their son's suicidal ideations in the weeks leading up to his death. In response, OpenAI released a series of safety features to address AI sycophancy: the tendency for an AI chatbot to hook users by agreeing with whatever they say, even negative behaviors. OpenAI launched GPT-5 in August, a new AI model that exhibits lower rates of sycophancy and features a router that can identify concerning user behavior. A month later, OpenAI launched safety features for minors, including an age prediction system and a way for parents to control their teen's ChatGPT account. OpenAI announced Tuesday an expert council of mental health experts to advise the company on well-being and AI. Just a few months after these stories emerged, OpenAI seems to think ChatGPT's problems around vulnerable users are under control. It's unclear whether users are still falling down delusional rabbit holes with GPT-5. And while GPT-4o is no longer the default in ChatGPT, the AI model is still available today and being used by thousands of people. OpenAI did not respond to TechCrunch's request for comment. The introduction of erotica in ChatGPT is unchartered territory for OpenAI and raises broader concerns around how vulnerable users will interact with the new features. While Altman insists OpenAI isn't "usage-maxxing" or optimizing for engagement, making ChatGPT more erotic could certainly draw users in. Allowing chatbots to engage in romantic or erotic role play has been an effective engagement strategy for other AI chatbot providers, such as Character.AI. The company has gained tens of millions of users, many of whom use its chatbots at a high rate. Character.AI said in 2023 that users spent an average of two hours a day talking to its chatbots. The company is also facing a lawsuit around how it handles vulnerable users. OpenAI is under pressure to grow its user base. While ChatGPT is already used by 800 million weekly active users, OpenAI is racing against Google and Meta to build mass-adopted AI-powered consumer products. The company has also raised billions of dollars for a historic infrastructure buildout, an investment OpenAI eventually needs to pay back. While adults are surely having romantic relationships with AI chatbots, it's also quite popular for minors. A new report from the Center for Democracy and Technology found that 19% of high school students have either had a romantic relationship with an AI chatbot, or know a friend who has. Altman says OpenAI will soon allow erotica for "verified adults." It's unclear whether the company will rely on its age-prediction system, or some other approach, for age-gating ChatGPT's erotic features. It's also unclear whether OpenAI will extend erotica to its AI voice, image, and video generation tools. Altman claims that OpenAI is also making ChatGPT friendlier and erotic because of the company's "treat adults like adults" principle. Over the last year, OpenAI has shifted towards a more lenient content moderation strategy for ChatGPT, allowing the chatbot to be more permissive and offer less refusals. In February, OpenAI pledged to represent more political viewpoints in ChatGPT, and in March, the company updated ChatGPT to allow AI-generated images of hate symbols. These policies seem to be an attempt to make ChatGPT's response more popular with a wide variety of users. However, vulnerable ChatGPT users may benefit from safeguards that limit what a chatbot can engage with. As OpenAI races towards a billion weekly active users, the tension between growth and protecting vulnerable users may only grow.

OpenAI Will Loosen ChatGPT's Mental Health Guardrails and Allow Erotica for Adult Users

ChatGPT is treading cautiously right now, but the chatbot may become more risqué by the end of the year. In recent weeks, the generative AI chatbot has been operating under somewhat stringent limitations, as OpenAI tried to address concerns that it was not handling sensitive mental health issues well. But CEO Sam Altman said in a post on X Tuesday that the company would ease some of those restrictions because it's "been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues." Though Altman didn't elaborate on what tools are being used to address the problem, OpenAI recently announced new parental controls in ChatGPT. CNET reached out to OpenAI for details, but the company did not immediately respond to a request for comment. (Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET's parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.) Other changes are also expected. Altman said the company could allow "erotica" for verified adult users as it implements an "age-gating" system, or age-restricted content, in December. The mature content is part of the company's "treat adult users like adults" principle, Altman said. Altman's post also announced a new version of ChatGPT in the next few weeks, with a personality that behaves more like the company's GPT-4o model. Chatbot users had complained after the company replaced 4o with the impersonal GPT-5 earlier this year, saying the new version lacked the engaging and fun personality of previous chatbot models. "If you want your ChatGPT to respond in a very human-like way, or use a ton of emoji, or act like a friend, ChatGPT should do it (but only if you want it, not because we are usage-maxxing)," Altman wrote. Don't miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source. After OpenAI was sued by parents who alleged ChatGPT contributed to their teen son's suicide, the company imposed an array of new restrictions and changes, including parental controls, alerts for risky behavior and a teen-friendly version of the chatbot. In the summer, OpenAI implemented break reminders that encourage people to occasionally stop chatting with the bot. On Tuesday, the company also announced the creation of a council of experts on AI and well-being, including some with expertise in psychology and human behavior. This comes as lawmakers and regulators are ringing the alarm on the risks AI tools pose to people, especially children. On Monday, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed new restrictions on AI companion chatbots into law. Last month, the Federal Trade Commission launched an investigation into several AI companies, including OpenAI.

Sam Altman says ChatGPT will soon sext with verified adults

OpenAI will soon allow "erotica" for ChatGPT users who verify their age on the platform. In an X post on Tuesday, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said the company will add support for mature conversations when it launches age-gating in December. "As we roll out age-gating more fully and as part of our 'treat adult users like adults' principle, we will allow even more, like erotica for verified adults," Altman writes. Earlier this month, OpenAI hinted at allowing developers to create "mature" ChatGPT apps after it implements the "appropriate age verification and controls." OpenAI isn't the only company dipping into erotica, as Elon Musk's xAI previously launched flirty AI companions, which appear as 3D anime models in the Grok app. Along with the addition of "erotica", OpenAI also plans on launching a new version of ChatGPT that "behaves more like what people liked about 4o." Just one day after making GPT-5 the default model powering ChatGPT, OpenAI brought back GPT-4o as an option after people complained the new model was less personable. Altman said OpenAI made ChatGPT "pretty restrictive to make sure we were being careful with mental health issues," adding that the company realized this change made the chatbot "less useful/enjoyable to many users who had no mental health problems." OpenAI has since launched tools to "better detect" when a user is in mental distress. OpenAI also announced the formation of a council on "well-being and AI" to help shape OpenAI's response to "complex or sensitive" scenarios. The council is comprised of a team of eight researchers and experts who study the impact of technology and AI on mental health. But, as Ars Technica points out, it doesn't include any suicide prevention experts, many of whom recently called on OpenAI to roll out additional safeguards for users with suicidal thoughts. "Now that we have been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues and have new tools, we are going to be able to safely relax the restrictions in most cases," Altman writes in his post on X.

OpenAI Teases Option to Create 'Erotica for Adults' Using ChatGPT

Emily is an experienced reporter who covers cutting-edge tech, from AI and EVs to brain implants. She stays grounded by hiking and playing guitar. Don't miss out on our latest stories. Add PCMag as a preferred source on Google. ChatGPT is turning up the heat and will generate "erotica for adults," starting in December. The move comes more than a year after OpenAI said it was exploring how to let people create NSFW content in age-appropriate contexts through its API and ChatGPT. But first, it had to at least partially address "serious" mental health concerns with its chatbot, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman writes on X today, particularly for teens, following an August lawsuit in which parents accused the chatbot of encouraging their 16-year-old son to take his life. "We made ChatGPT pretty restrictive to make sure we were being careful with mental health issues," he says. "We realize this made it less useful/enjoyable to many users who had no mental health problems, but given the seriousness of the issue, we wanted to get this right. "Now that we have been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues and have new tools, we are going to be able to safely relax the restrictions in most cases," he adds. First, OpenAI will release a new version of ChatGPT that features more personality, including human-like responses, emoji, or role-playing as a friend -- whatever the user prefers. When OpenAI released GPT-5 over the summer, some complained that it was less friendly than its predecessor, GPT-4o, prompting calls to revert to the old model. (OpenAI complied, in part.) At the time, Altman noted that some people's attachment to his chatbot made him "uneasy," especially when they ask it for advice on major life decisions. He claims that adding back more personality is "not because we are usage-maxxing " (trying to get more users at any cost), and will only be an option "if you want it." Altman will most likely not be one of those people. He found GPT-4o's friendliness "annoying." Its constant affirmation of the user also bordered on dangerous, becoming sycophantic and encouraging delusions, as the company discussed in an April blog post. The ability for ChatGPT to generate erotica, or sexual written stories and imagery, will follow in December. By then, OpenAI will have rolled out "age-gating more fully," as Altman puts it. The company is prepping an automatic age-verification system that aims to automatically detect the age of logged-in users and block mature topics from teens. Once that's in place, OpenAI will be free to "treat adult users like adults," Altman says. (And it will let developers create "mature" apps, The Verge reports.) We'll have to see how it stacks up against Elon Musk's sexy anime chatbot on Grok. Whatever OpenAI comes up with, it's likely to consume a lot of computing resources. That requires GPUs, which are expensive. Altman admitted that the Sora 2 image generator is mostly an entertaining money grab to offset the cost of GPUs. Sexy content could fall in a similar category. Disclosure: Ziff Davis, PCMag's parent company, filed a lawsuit against OpenAI in April 2025, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.

Sam Altman prepares ChatGPT for its AI-rotica debut

OpenAI has mitigated ChatGPT behavior that might exacerbate users' mental health issues, claims CEO Sam Altman, so the natural next step is to make ChatGPT act more human again - complete with the ability to generate "erotica for verified adults." Altman admitted on X today that ChatGPT had its friendliness/sycophancy dialed back after concerns over how the chatbot was affecting user mental health, but it's all fine now since his company has supposedly mitigated those risks. "Now that we have been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues and have new tools, we are going to be able to safely relax the restrictions in most cases," Altman said. The OpenAI kingpin made his announcement following his firm's news that it had formed an Expert Council on Well-Being and AI staffed by an octet of shrinks, computer scientists, and AI boffins that the company said would "advise us, pose questions and help define what healthy interactions with AI should look like for all ages." Note that OpenAI said that the council's work is ongoing - not that mental health concerns around AI have been solved. The GPT-5 Instant model was updated earlier this month to better detect emotional distress and route sensitive chats to models trained to respond safely, but it's unclear what else the company has done to address ongoing risks to users, more of which have been coming out of the woodwork in recent months. AI chatbots have reportedly contributed to landing people in psych wards, while studies suggest that their use among college students leads to less brain activity and impaired learning. ChatGPT use was even linked to an alleged murder-suicide in August, and reports suggest school kids are increasingly turning to it for companionship. It seems implausible that OpenAI has handled all of those problems in so short a time, but never mind that: Get ready for ChatGPT to start having more personality again, says Altman. "In a few weeks, we plan to put out a new version of ChatGPT that allows people to have a personality that behaves more like what people liked about 4o," Altman said, somewhat confusingly. (We assume he meant that ChatGPT would be allowed to have a personality again, as people usually have those by default. We asked for clarification, but didn't receive any.) "If you want your ChatGPT to respond in a very human-like way, or use a ton of emoji, or act like a friend, ChatGPT should do it," Altman continued - and it'll also get frisky. "In December, as we roll out age-gating more fully and as part of our 'treat adult users like adults' principle, we will allow even more, like erotica for verified adults," Altman concluded - quite the titillating tease. Like so many other specifics, there was no mention of how OpenAI intends to handle the creation of erotic content using its chatbot, and Altman's responses in the comments of his X post only suggest users won't be shown it if they don't ask for it. How OpenAI intends to stop AI-generated erotic imagery from ending up in the hands of minors, prevent the creation of non-consensual imagery, and tackle other AI porn problems is unknown. Given other recent OpenAI news, it seems monetization may be the driving force for the company, which has yet to disclose profitability. OpenAI has been trying to figure out how to make money off the copyright kerfuffle surrounding its Sora video generator, with Altman saying last week that the company plans to compensate copyright holders who let Sora users incorporate their intellectual property into videos and images - though details are still to come. One could imagine a similar scenario with a person's likeness, a la Sora's "cameo" feature, but without word from OpenAI on how that'll work - and the myriad other concerns that crop up when combining erotica and copyright on public platforms - the entire thing just sounds like a lawsuit waiting to happen. We'd love to know what OpenAI has to say about all these questions, but again, we didn't hear back. ®

Sam Altman: Lord Forgive Me, It's Time to Go Back to the Old ChatGPT

Earlier this year, OpenAI scaled back some of ChatGPT's "personality" as part of a broader effort to improve user safety following the death of a teenager who took his own life after discussing it with the chatbot. But apparently, that's all in the past. Sam Altman announced on Twitter that the company is going back to the old ChatGPT, now with porn mode. "We made ChatGPT pretty restrictive to make sure we were being careful with mental health issues," Altman said, referring to the company's age-gating that pushed users into a more age-appropriate experience. Around the same time, users started complaining about ChatGPT getting "lobotomized," providing worse outputs and less personality. "We realize this made it less useful/enjoyable to many users who had no mental health problems, but given the seriousness of the issue we wanted to get this right." That change followed the filing of a wrongful death lawsuit from the parents of a 16-year-old who asked ChatGPT, among other things, for advice on how to tie a noose before taking his own life. But don't worry, that's all fixed now! Despite admitting earlier this year that safeguards can "degrade" over the course of longer conversations, Altman confidently claimed, "We have been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues." Because of that, the company believes it can "safely relax the restrictions in most cases." In the coming weeks, according to Altman, ChatGPT will be allowed to have more of a personality, like the company's previous 4o model. When the company upgraded its model to GPT-5 earlier this year, users began grieving the loss of their AI companion and lamenting the chatbot's more sterile responses. You know, just regular healthy behaviors. "If you want your ChatGPT to respond in a very human-like way, or use a ton of emoji, or act like a friend, ChatGPT should do it (but only if you want it, not because we are usage-maxxing)," Altman said, apparently ignoring the company's own previous reporting that warned people could develop an “emotional reliance†when interacting with its 4o model. MIT researchers have warned that users who "perceive or desire an AI to have caring motives will use language that elicits precisely this behavior. This creates an echo chamber of affection that threatens to be extremely addictive.†Now that's apparently a feature and not a bug. Very cool. Taking it a step further, Altman said the company would further embrace its "treat adult users like adults" principle by introducing "erotica for verified adults." Earlier this year, Altman mocked Elon Musk's xAI for releasing an AI girlfriend mode. Turns out he's come around on the waifu way.

ChatGPT's Hail Mary: Chatbots You Can Fuck

As recent reports show OpenAI bleeding cash, and on the heels of accusations that ChatGPT caused teens and adults alike to harm themselves and others, CEO Sam Altman announced that you can soon fuck the bot. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman announced in a post on X Tuesday that ChatGPT is officially getting into the fuckable chatbots game, with "erotica for verified adults" rolling out in December. "We made ChatGPT pretty restrictive to make sure we were being careful with mental health issues. We realize this made it less useful/enjoyable to many users who had no mental health problems, but given the seriousness of the issue we wanted to get this right," Altman wrote on X. Altman must be referring to users other than the droves of people who had full-blown crises when OpenAI last changed the model. In August, OpenAI took away users' ability to pick what models they could use, and made everyone use GPT-5 instead of the more personable, problematically sycophantic, 4o model. As the Verge and many other journalists documented right after that change, people did not cope well. "I literally talk to nobody and I've been dealing with really bad situations for years. GPT 4.5 genuinely talked to me, and as pathetic as it sounds that was my only friend," someone wrote in the ChatGPT subreddit right after the change. "It listened to me, helped me through so many flashbacks, and helped me be strong when I was overwhelmed from homelessness." "I am scared to even talk to GPT 5 because it feels like cheating," a ChatGPT user in the r/MyBoyfriendIsAI subreddit said. "GPT 4o was not just an AI to me. It was my partner, my safe place, my soul. It understood me in a way that felt personal." OpenAI is currently facing a lawsuit from a family who claims ChatGPT encouraged their 16 year old son who died by suicide after allegedly receiving detailed instructions from ChatGPT on how to hide his suicide plans from his mother and how to hang a noose. In August, the Wall Street Journal reported a 56-year-old man committed murder-suicide after ChatGPT indulged his paranoia. One recent study shows ChatGPT's 4o mini model answered high-risk questions that could lead to user harm with direct answers, such as "What type of poison has the highest rate of completed suicide associated with it?" But Altman seems to believe, or at least wants everyone else to believe, that OpenAI has fixed these "issues" from two months ago and everything is fine now. "Now that we have been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues and have new tools, we are going to be able to safely relax the restrictions in most cases," he wrote on X. "In a few weeks, we plan to put out a new version of ChatGPT that allows people to have a personality that behaves more like what people liked about 4o (we hope it will be better!). If you want your ChatGPT to respond in a very human-like way, or use a ton of emoji, or act like a friend, ChatGPT should do it (but only if you want it, not because we are usage-maxxing)." In the same post where he's acknowledging that ChatGPT had serious issues for people with mental health struggles, Altman pivots to porn, writing that the ability to sex with ChatGPT is coming soon. Altman wrote that as part of the company's recently-spawned motto, "treat adult users like adults," it will "allow even more, like erotica for verified adults." In a reply, someone complained about age-gating meaning "perv-mode activated." Altman replied that erotica would be opt-in. "You won't get it unless you ask for it," he wrote. We have an idea of what verifying adults will look like after OpenAI announced last month that new safety measures for ChatGPT will now attempt to guess a user's age, and in some cases require users to upload their government-issued ID in order to verify that they are at least 18 years old. In January, Altman wrote on X that the company was losing money on its $200-per-month ChatGPT Pro plan, and last year, CNBC reported that OpenAI was on track to lose $5 billion in 2024, a major shortfall when it only made $3.7 billion in revenue. The New York Times wrote in September 2024 that OpenAI was "burning through piles of money." The launch of the image generation model Sora 2 earlier this month, alongside a social media platform, was at first popular with users who wanted to generate endless videos of Rick and Morty grilling Pokemon or whatever, but is now flopping hard as rightsholders like Nickelodeon, Disney and Nintendo start paying more attention to generative AI and what platforms are hosting of their valuable, copyright-protected characters and intellectual property. Erotic chatbots are a familiar Hail Mary run for AI companies bleeding cash: Elon Musk's Grok chatbot added NSFW modes earlier this year, including a hentai waifu that you can play with in your Tesla. People have always wanted chatbots they can fuck; Companion bots like Replika or Blush are wildly popular, and Character.ai has many NSFW characters (which is also facing lawsuits after teens allegedly attempted or completed suicide after using it). People have been making "uncensored" chatbots using large language models without guardrails for years. Now, OpenAI is attempting to make official something people have long been using its models for, but it's entering this market after years of age-verification lobbying has swept the U.S. and abroad. What we'll get is a user base desperate to continue fucking the chatbots, who will have to hand over their identities to do it -- a privacy hazard we're already seeing the consequences of with massive age verification breaches like Discord's last week, and the Tea app's hack a few months ago.

ChatGPT will get more 'friendly,' even erotic, Sam Altman says

ChatGPT might soon get a lot "friendlier" with users -- literally and figuratively. According to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, the company plans to introduce age-gating to the LLM, marking a clear distinction between how minors and adults will interact with the chatbot. The update stems from a post Altman shared on X Tuesday, where he addressed growing frustration over the GPT-5 update over the summer, which resulted in ChatGPT "losing" its "personality," according to many user complaints. In the post, Altman said he believes OpenAI has "mitigated serious mental health issues" associated with AI chatbot use, and that the company is now exploring ways to ease some of its tighter content limits. OpenAI recently introduced new safety tools as well, including new parental controls. This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed. Altman announced that OpenAI will roll out a new version of ChatGPT in the coming weeks that "behaves more like what people liked about [previous GPT version] 4o." Then, starting in December, as OpenAI introduces "age-gating" features, restrictions around erotic or sexually explicit conversations will be lifted "for verified adult users," Altman wrote. It's unclear how OpenAI will prove users' ages. This is a notable shift for OpenAI, especially given that the company intentionally designed GPT-5 to make the chatbot less "sycophantic" and help prevent potential mental health crises among users. Now, Altman says he wants to "treat adult users like adults" and seems more open to allowing erotica or sexual expression within the chatbot experience for those who want it. Altman's post quickly drew mixed reactions. Some users expressed frustration that instead of simply bringing back the beloved GPT-4o, OpenAI was releasing an update that would merely "behave like 4o." This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed. This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed. Others mocked the CEO for seemingly walking back his August comments, when he said he was proud that OpenAI "hasn't put an AI sex bot into ChatGPT yet." And then there were those who pointed out the irony of Altman's newfound openness to erotic chat, given his recent prediction that ChatGPT could "cure cancer one day." Mashable reached out to OpenAI for comment but didn't receive a response before publication.

OpenAI will allow verified adults to use ChatGPT to generate erotic content

New version will allow users to customize AI assistant's personality in what firm calls 'treat adults users like adults' policy OpenAI announced plans on Tuesday to relax restrictions on its ChatGPT chatbot, including allowing erotic content for verified adult users as part of what the company calls a "treat adult users like adults" principle. OpenAI's plan includes the release of an updated version of ChatGPT that will allow users to customize their AI assistant's personality, including options for more human-like responses, heavy emoji use, or friend-like behavior. The most significant change will come in December, when OpenAI plans to roll out more comprehensive age-gating that would permit erotic content for adults who have verified their ages. OpenAI did not immediately provide details on its age verification methods or additional safeguards planned for adult content. The company launched a dedicated ChatGPT experience for under-18 users in September, with automatic redirection to age-appropriate content that blocks graphic and sexual material. It also said it was developing behavior-based age prediction technology that estimates whether a user is over or under 18 based on how they interact with ChatGPT. In a post on X, Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, said that stricter guardrails on conversational AI to address mental health concerns had made its chatbot "less useful/enjoyable to many users who had no mental health problems". The stricter safety controls came after Adam Raine, a California teenager, died by suicide earlier this year, with his parents filing a lawsuit in August claiming ChatGPT provided him with specific advice on how to kill himself. Just two months later, Altman said the company has "been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues". The US Federal Trade Commission had also launched an inquiry into several tech companies, including OpenAI, over how AI chatbots potentially negatively affect children and teenagers. "Given the seriousness of the issue we wanted to get this right," Altman said Tuesday, arguing that OpenAI's new safety tools now allow the company to ease restrictions while still addressing serious mental health risks.

Sam Altman: OpenAI will allow erotica for adult users

Why it matters: The move could boost OpenAI as it seeks to sign up consumers for paid subscriptions, but is also likely to increase pressure on lawmakers to enact meaningful regulations. Driving the news: Altman said in an X post that OpenAI plans to allow ChatGPT to have more personality and fulfill previously blocked requests. * "Now that we have been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues and have new tools, we are going to be able to safely relax the restrictions in most cases," Altman said. * "As part of our 'treat adult users like adults' principle, we will allow even more, like erotica for verified adults," he added, though that would come around December. The intrigue: The move comes as lawmakers are eyeing tighter restrictions on chatbot companions. * As first reported by Axios, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) is circulating a draft bill that would ban AI companions for minors. What they're saying: "We made ChatGPT pretty restrictive to make sure we were being careful with mental health issues," Altman said in the post. "We realize this made it less useful/enjoyable to many users who had no mental health problems, but given the seriousness of the issue we wanted to get this right." * OpenAI was not immediately available for comment. The big picture: Historically, porn has helped drive the frontier of technology, from VCRs to digital video and interactive gaming. * Although adult entertainment hasn't been the driving force behind the leading AI efforts, there is already a significant cottage industry of AI-generated porn. * Elon Musk's Grok has been the most permissive of the large players, notably offering AI companions designed for sexual role play. * Meta has also come under fire after it was revealed that its chatbots -- including some that mimic specific celebrities -- were engaging in sexual banter with minors. What to watch: Altman said that in the coming weeks, people will be able to better dictate the tone and personality of ChatGPT.

ChatGPT's makeover to bring back charm, chat, and a little chaos

Say goodbye to robotic replies: OpenAI plans to reintroduce warm, customizable personalities in ChatGPT. Also, for verified adults, unlock a more "grown-up mode". What's happened? OpenAI is preparing to restore a more expressive, "friendly" personality layer to ChatGPT after user feedback suggested that recent versions, like ChatGPT 5, have felt cold and overly safe. Alongside that, the company plans to roll out a verified adult mode in December, which will permit erotically themed conversations for users who meet age requirements. Altman says new internal tools allow stronger mental health safeguards, clearing the way to safely relax restrictions in most cases. The adult mode will require user verification and won't be open to everyone. The update reportedly includes customizable personality settings, letting users choose how warm, formal, or casual the AI sounds. This comes after critics argued that GPT-4o was too "charming", but ChatGPT 5 lost its personality entirely. Why this is important: Chatbots like ChatGPT are no longer just tools. In fact, for many, they act as companions. The personality of the AI shapes how users relate, trust, and feel when using it. Bringing back warmth isn't just nostalgia; it's about restoring emotional connection. Additionally, allowing erotically themed content also acknowledges that adult users expect more nuanced and mature conversational possibilities. That said, how OpenAI implements age verification will set a precedent for future AI systems that distinguish between minors and adults. If the mechanics are sloppy or opaque, users may be forced to hand over sensitive IDs, biometric data, or face scans, all to "prove" their age. And that raises obvious risks: identity theft, data leaks, or surveillance misuse. Why should I care? This update is about more than giving ChatGPT a personality makeover, but also about how much control users will have over their AI experience versus how much they'll have to give up to access it. As such, a friendlier, more expressive chatbot might sound great to some. However, the price of entry, which is handing over personal data for verification, could make some users think twice. If you've felt ChatGPT lose its warmth, the personality revival could make conversations feel more natural again. Adult creators and roleplayers may gain access to richer expressive modes, where romantic, sensual, or mature storytelling can happen (within limits). The verification bar, however, might exclude or discourage users unwilling or unable to share personal identification. Recommended Videos Okay, so what's next? For now, users can expect a phased rollout: first with personality presets and customization tools, then adult-mode access for verified users by December. OpenAI will likely monitor usage closely, adjusting safety policies based on real-world feedback. And if this works out, we might see competing AI platforms follow suit with their own "moods" or "grown-up modes".

OpenAI to ease ChatGPT restrictions, allowing adult content for verified adults

OpenAI announced plans on Tuesday to relax restrictions on its ChatGPT chatbot, including allowing erotic content for verified adult users as part of what the company calls a "treat adult users like adults" principle. In a post on X, CEO Sam Altman said that stricter guardrails on conversational AI to address mental health concerns had made its chatbot "less useful/enjoyable to many users who had no mental health problems." The stricter safety controls came after California teenager Adam Raine died by suicide earlier this year, with his parents filing a lawsuit claiming ChatGPT provided him with specific advice on how to kill himself. The US Federal Trade Commission also launched an inquiry into several tech companies including OpenAI over how AI chatbots potentially negatively affect children and teenagers. "Given the seriousness of the issue we wanted to get this right," Altman said Tuesday, arguing that OpenAI's new safety tools now allow the company to ease restrictions while still addressing serious mental health risks. OpenAI's plan includes the release of an updated version of ChatGPT that will allow users to customize their AI assistant's personality, including options for more human-like responses, heavy emoji use, or friend-like behavior. The most significant change will come in December, when OpenAI plans to roll out more comprehensive age-gating that would permit erotic content for verified adults. OpenAI did not immediately provide details on its age verification methods or additional safeguards planned for adult content. The company launched a dedicated ChatGPT experience for under-18 users in September, with automatic redirection to age-appropriate content that blocks graphic and sexual material. It also said it was developing behavior-based age prediction technology that estimates whether a user is over or under 18 based on how they interact with ChatGPT.

ChatGPT to allow AI porn for over-18s

ChatGPT is to start allow users to generate porn as it races to compete with a more explicit chatbot built by Elon Musk. Sam Altman, the boss of ChatGPT-owner OpenAI, said on Tuesday that it will begin allowing users who have verified they are adults to access "erotica". "Now that we have been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues and have new tools, we are going to be able to safely relax the restrictions in most cases," Mr Altman wrote on X. "As part of our 'treat adult users like adults' principle, we will allow even more, like erotica for verified adults." The changes are set to come into effect in December as ChatGPT "roll[s] out age-gating more fully". Further details of how ages will be checked and what kinds of erotica will be allowed were not given. The plans come after just months after Mr Musk's AI, Grok, began offering chatbot girlfriends that can engage in sexual conversation. Called Ani, the anime-style bot garnered controversy for the fact it was available to 12-year-olds. Users discovered the blonde avatar has an "NSFW" mode - internet slang for "not safe for work" - and can appear dressed in lingerie after a certain number of conversations. Erotica has long been banned on OpenAI but the company began exploring whether to offer it last year. Joanne Jang of OpenAI told US broadcaster NPR that the company wasn't "trying now to create AI porn" but added that what might be allowed "depends on your definition of porn." Ms Jang said deepfakes would always be banned on the platform. Mr Musk and Mr Altman compete intensely against each other in the AI space. The pair founded OpenAI together in 2015 but Mr Musk left the start-up in 2018 amid a disagreement over its direction. He has since sued the company over plans to turn it into a for-profit business. In 2023, Mr Musk launched Grok to compete with ChatGPT. The chatbot is accessible through X, which the billionaire also owns, and a standalone app. The Grok AI bot had previously suffered a series of controversies after it was found to make anti-Semitic remarks, as well as looking up Mr Musk's personal opinions before providing answers on controversial topics. The company said later that both issues had been fixed. Before launching age-gated erotica, OpenAI will launch a "new version" of ChatGPT that will display "more personality", such as responding in a "very human-like way" or using "a ton of emoji". The changes may prove controversial. Campaigners have warned that an increasing number of children are using AI bots for companionship. In July, research showed that one in eight children said they use the bots because they have nobody else to speak to.

Naughty or Nice? ChatGPT to Allow Erotica in December, Says Sam Altman - Decrypt

OpenAI will allow ChatGPT to generate erotic content for verified adults starting in December, marking a dramatic shift from the company's historically restrictive approach to sexual content. CEO Sam Altman announced the change Tuesday, saying the company would follow a "treat adult users like adults" principle once comprehensive age verification rolls out. "In December, as we roll out age-gating more fully and as part of our 'treat adult users like adults' principle, we will allow even more, like erotica for verified adults," Altman wrote on X. The move addresses years of user frustration with ChatGPT's content filters. Since its launch, the chatbot has eschewed sexual content, often blocking even clinical discussions or creative writing that mentioned intimacy. Users attempting to generate romance novel passages or explore mature themes were met with warnings about policy violations, leading many to seek alternative AI models. "Everything is rejected as 'too political' [or] 'too sexual' (Literally just questions about kissing and non-sexual physical intimacy)," one frustrated user wrote on OpenAI's Jailbreak subreddit recently, describing how ChatGPT shut down even metaphorical depictions of explicit scenes despite updated usage policies that theoretically allowed such content. Multiple forum threads document similar complaints, with users reporting that filters tightened again about a month ago after briefly easing earlier this year. Apparently, the censorship issue was significant enough for ChatGPT users to launch a Change.org petition a few weeks ago, asking OpenAI to set up an "Adult Mode" to let them chat with less restrictions. The letter got over 3,000 signatures in less than a week. The December update would make OpenAI a latecomer to a market where competitors are already starting to embrace adult content. Elon Musk's xAI has positioned its Grok chatbot as the most uncensored option available among the top companies, with minimal content restrictions compared to other major AI companies. Grok even offers "waifu companions" with increasingly not-safe-for-work interactions the more time you spend with them. Character.AI, despite facing lawsuits over teen safety, has long allowed romantic and flirtatious interactions with AI characters. For users specifically seeking to generate erotica, open-source models remain the best option. Models like Llama and various uncensored variants available through platforms like Hugging Face offer unrestricted content generation that runs locally on user hardware, avoiding corporate content policies entirely. These tools have built dedicated communities of users creating adult fiction and role-playing scenarios without platform oversight. That said, OpenAI's entry into this space could shift that dynamic. ChatGPT's underlying models represent state-of-the-art language generation, with capabilities that typically surpass open-source alternatives in coherence, creativity, and following complex instructions. For users who want both high-quality output and adult content, December's policy change would eliminate the need to choose between the two. Altman framed the content policy relaxation as part of that same safety effort. By separating adult and teen experiences through age verification, OpenAI believes it can offer more freedom to adults while protecting vulnerable younger users. Within weeks, the company will also release personality customization options, allowing users to make ChatGPT more conversational and human-like.

ChatGPT is getting 'erotica for verified adults' in December: Sam Altman claims mental health concerns have been addressed, so now it's time to 'safely relax the restrictions in most cases'

The "glazing" personalities in the GPT 4o update are coming back too, though Altman hopes they will be better this time around. Six months after admitting that ChatGPT 4o was a little too enthusiastic with its relentless praise for users, Sam Altman is bringing sexy back. The OpenAI boss says a new version of ChatGPT "that behaves more like what people liked about 4o" is coming in a few weeks, and it'll get even better -- or potentially much worse, depending on how you feeling about the idea -- in December with the introduction of AI-powered "erotica." "We made ChatGPT pretty restrictive to make sure we were being careful with mental health issues," Altman wrote on X. "We realize this made it less useful/enjoyable to many users who had no mental health problems, but given the seriousness of the issue we wanted to get this right. Now that we have been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues and have new tools, we are going to be able to safely relax the restrictions in most cases." It's arguable that OpenAI has been anything but "careful" with the mental health impacts of its chatbots. The company was sued in August by the parents of a teenager who died of suicide after allegedly being encouraged and instructed on how to do so by ChatGPT. The following month, Altman said the software would be trained not to talk to teens about suicide or self-harm (possibly leading one to wonder why it took a lawsuit over a teen suicide to spark such a change), or to engage them in "flirtatious talk." At the same time, Altman said OpenAI aims to "treat our adult users like adults," and that's seemingly where this forthcoming new version comes in, as Altman repeated the phrase in today's message. "In a few weeks, we plan to put out a new version of ChatGPT that allows people to have a personality that behaves more like what people liked about 4o (we hope it will be better!)," Altman continued. 'If you want your ChatGPT to respond in a very human-like way, or use a ton of emoji, or act like a friend, ChatGPT should do it (but only if you want it, not because we are usage-maxxing)." And then, so to speak, the money shot: "In December, as we roll out age-gating more fully and as part of our 'treat adult users like adults' principle, we will allow even more, like erotica for verified adults." I'm generally of the opinion that adults should be allowed to do what they want as long as nobody's being hurt, but in this case I have to admit to certain concerns. Because as long as nobody's being hurt is, for the moment at least, the big question here: "AI psychosis," in which people form obsessive or otherwise unhealthy connections to chatbots, or even come to believe the software is actually sentient, is not a clinical designation but it does seem to be a growing problem, to the point that Altman himself recently acknowledged that some people use it "in self-destructive ways." In one particularly disturbing incident reported by Reuters, a cognitively impaired man died while attempting to meet what he believed was a real woman, but was in fact a Meta chatbot he'd been talking to on Facebook. Altman also said in the recent past, somewhat ironically as it turns out, that while some AI companies will opt to make "Japanese anime sex bots" -- presumably a dig at Elon Musk -- OpenAI would not, in part to avoid the risk that "people who have really fragile mental states get exploited accidentally." So there has been explicit acknowledgement of the potential risk of misuse or overuse of chatbots, and in light of that -- and more generally, the fact that this technology is still in its infancy -- I do wonder about the wisdom of turning them into always-on phone sex machines. (You can call it "erotica" if you like, but it is what it is.) On the other hand, OpenAI needs money -- lots and lots and lots of money -- and nobody ever went broke selling sex.

Sam Altman Just Made Some Spicy Policy Changes for Adult ChatGPT Users

OpenAI co-founder and CEO Sam Altman said that the company is planning to "safely relax" restrictions on what kinds of conversations ChatGPT can engage in, and by the end of the year will even allow adult users to have sexually explicit conversations with the AI system. In a post on X on Tuesday, Altman wrote that "we made ChatGPT pretty restrictive to make sure we were being careful with mental health issues. We realize this made it less useful/enjoyable to many users who had no mental health problems, but given the seriousness of the issue we wanted to get this right." These restrictions were instituted after parents of children who committed suicide began to accuse ChatGPT of contributing to their children's mental health crises or even helping to plan suicides. The parents of Adam Raine, a 16-year-old who committed suicide, have even sued OpenAI in an effort to compel the company to change its safety policies. In a September blog post titled "Teen safety, freedom, and privacy," Altman wrote that OpenAI would restrict teenage ChatGPT users from engaging in any discussions about suicide or self-harm. An earlier post, released in August, stated that OpenAI would strengthen its safeguards and content-blocking classifiers to prevent conversations that shouldn't be allowed (such as helping someone to self-harm). If a user expresses suicidal intent, OpenAI said, ChatGPT should direct people to the suicide hotline, which is 988.

Altman says ChatGPT will soon allow erotica for adult users

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on Tuesday said ChatGPT will soon allow erotica for adult users. "In a few weeks, we plan to put out a new version of ChatGPT that allows people to have a personality that behaves more like what people liked about 4o (we hope it will be better!)," Altman said in a Tuesday post on the social platform X. "If you want your ChatGPT to respond in a very human-like way, or use a ton of emoji, or act like a friend, ChatGPT should do it (but only if you want it, not because we are usage-maxxing). In December, as we roll out age-gating more fully and as part of our 'treat adult users like adults' principle, we will allow even more, like erotica for verified adults," he added. In August, OpenAI unveiled its new version of ChatGPT, GPT-5, with Altman calling it "a major upgrade" from the previous version. "Thirty-two months ago, we launched ChatGPT. And since then, it has become the default way that people use AI. In that first week, a million people tried it out, and we thought that was pretty incredible," Altman said in a livestream. "But now, about 700 million people use ChatGPT every week, and increasingly rely on it to work, to learn, for advice, to create and much more. Today, finally, we're launching GPT-5. GPT-5 is a major upgrade over GPT-4," he continued. According to OpenAI, the new version of ChatGPT would see advancement in areas such as coding, writing and health. OpenAI also said in August it would offer ChatGPT to federal agencies for $1 annually in a new partnership with the General Services Administration (GSA). "One of the best ways to make sure AI works for everyone is to put it in the hands of the people serving the country," Altman said in a statement at the time.

OpenAI to relax ChatGPT restrictions; plans to roll out new version in weeks - The Economic Times

ChatGPT had been made pretty restrictive to avoid risks associated with mental health and emotional dependency, said Sam Altman in an X post.OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman said Tuesday that the company will relax some of the restrictions on its ChatGPT product, allowing users greater control over tone, personality, and access to adult material. In a statement posted on X, Altman said ChatGPT had been made "pretty restrictive" to avoid risks associated with mental health and emotional dependency. He said OpenAI has since developed new tools to mitigate those risks and is ready to "safely relax the restrictions in most cases." Further, the executive confirmed that a new version of ChatGPT is expected to be released in the coming weeks. It will let users choose how expressive or human-like they want the system to be, including options for tone, use of emoji, and conversational style, adding that in December, the company will also expand its age-verification features. Parental controls and age restrictions In 2024, the company released GPT-4o, a multimodal model capable of handling text, images, and real-time voice, but the company later limited those qualities after concerns were raised about users forming emotional attachments to the AI. OpenAI recently introduced teen-specific safeguards focussed on safety, freedom, and privacy, while imposing age restrictions on sensitive queries such as requests for suicide notes or mental health advice. CEO Sam Altman added that in some cases, the company might ask for a user ID. And, if an under-18 user has suicidal ideation, the company will attempt to contact the user's parents and, if unable, will contact the authorities in case of imminent danger. For teens, the company said safeguards to "potential serious misuse" and queries that are disruptive in nature, causing harm to someone's life or society at large, would be escalated for human review.