UK's Starmer announces crackdown on AI chatbots in child safety push United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced a crackdown on artificial intelligence chatbots that endanger children and pledged to seek broader powers to regulate internet access for minors. Starmer's office said on Monday that the government would target "vile and illegal content created by AI" and push for legal powers to act quickly on the findings of a public consultation that will consider a social media ban for children below 16 years of age. "Technology is moving really fast, and the law has got to keep up," Starmer said in a statement. "We are acting to protect children's wellbeing and help parents to navigate the minefield of social media," he said. The measures will require all AI chatbot providers to abide by digital safety laws, including a ban on creating sexualised images without a subject's consent.

YouTube is the world's biggest source of online video, with more than 2 billion visitors monthly. YouTube will use machine learning to automatically apply age restrictions on videos, the Google-owned video site said Tuesday, widening its use of artificial intelligence to automate blocking some videos from viewers who either aren't signed into a YouTube account or are signed in as a viewer under the age of 18. Creators who believe their videos were blocked unfairly can appeal. YouTube said these automated age restrictions and some tweaks to what it categorizes as inappropriate for people under 18 will all "roll out over the coming months." Currently, YouTube has a human team that applies the age restrictions when it reviews a video that isn't appropriate for younger viewers. "Going forward, we will build on our approach of using machine learning to detect content for review, by developing and adapting our technology to help us automatically apply age restrictions," YouTube said.

USA TODAY consumer editor Michelle Maltais and Common Sense Media executive editor Sierra Filucci share ways to manage your household's attachment to media and electronic devices. There are a few things parents often fret about when it comes to their children playing video games: Is the game's content appropriate for their child? Are they having trouble tearing themselves away from the console? Just who are they talking to online in that headset? Compounding these concerns is the fact mom and dad can't always be around. Some consoles are portable, too, such as the Nintendo Switch, which a child can take to their bedroom and close the door.