OpenAI chief government Sam Altman has introduced that ChatGPT will quickly have the ability to generate erotica for verified grownup customers. The transfer, framed by Altman as an effort to “treat adult users like adults,” comes as the corporate faces scrutiny over the way in which its AI bot can have an effect on customers’ psychological well being amid the rise of so-called “AI psychosis” circumstances. It additionally follows within the footsteps of rival corporations, together with Elon Musk’s xAI, which have already launched extra sexually express chatbot “companions” to their platforms.
There may be clearly a big demand for AI chatbots which can be able to behaving in romantic or sexual methods. An April survey of 6,000 common AI customers by the Harvard Enterprise Assessment discovered that “companionship and therapy” was the commonest use case. One other examine from Ark Make investments discovered that adult-focused AI platforms made important beneficial properties final 12 months, capturing 14.5% of the market beforehand dominated by OnlyFans, up from simply 1.5% the 12 months earlier than.
Widespread alternate options that market themselves as companion AI chatbots, resembling Character.ai and Replika, additionally converse to this rising demand from customers. Earlier this 12 months, xAI launched “companion mode” for its chatbot Grok, a function that lets customers interact with numerous characters, together with a extremely sexualized anime persona known as “Ani.”
“OpenAI is stuck between a bit of a rock and a hard place, because I think they have seen a strong demand signal from users,” Jessica Li, a senior analysis analyst at Georgetown’s Middle for Safety and Rising Know-how, instructed Fortune. “In terms of the relationships that people are having with models…erotic content or adult content would also fall under this bucket of emotional engagement with the models.”
The transfer could possibly be an try by OpenAI to “straddle the line” between maintaining the market share they have already got by promising opt-in content material moderation for NSFW content material, Li stated, whereas additionally seeing if they will seize different customers from extra specialised or area of interest companies like Replika.
“Despite some of the narratives around building artificial general intelligence that will supercharge the economy, OpenAI is still trying to operate as a technology platform, and somewhat like a social media company,” Li stated. “There’s an interesting tension between the narratives that are being sold to investors and politicians… versus the things that are actually happening in the market.”
OpenAI’s foray into grownup content material has drawn criticism from little one security advocates and notable trade figures involved about erotica reaching youthful customers, regardless of age verifications.
Earlier this week, the entrepreneur and TV persona Mark Cuban stated OpenAI’s plan may “backfire hard,” and argued that folks is not going to belief OpenAI’s age filters to maintain youngsters away from express materials. Within the US, the Federal Commerce Fee has already opened an inquiry into how AI chatbots work together with minors, and state lawmakers are contemplating tighter guidelines round digital companions and sexualized AI content material. Jenny Kim, a companion on the legislation agency Boies Schiller Flexner, instructed the BBC that OpenAI is “using people like guinea pigs,” and questioned how the corporate would forestall youngsters from accessing grownup materials on the platform.
Reached for remark, OpenAI stated that the corporate was constructing an age prediction system to grasp whether or not somebody is over or underneath 18. They added that if a consumer’s age couldn’t be confidently confirmed, the chatbot would take the safer route and default to the under-18 expertise, whereas giving adults methods to show their age to unlock grownup capabilities.
Reacting to a number of the backlash on X, Altman stated that the announcement had blown “up on the erotica point much more than I thought it was going to.” He emphasised that the change was “just one example of us allowing more user freedom for adults,” not a retreat from security measures or guardrails round psychological well being.
“We are not the elected moral police of the world,” he stated, including that ChatGPT would proceed to “prioritize safety over privacy and freedom for teenagers” whereas giving adults extra autonomy.
The GPT-4o backlash
OpenAI has additionally been reckoning with an sudden wave of backlash following its determination to exchange the model of ChatGPT powered by GPT-4o with its newer GPT-5 mannequin. Customers revolted in opposition to the change, citing misplaced AI friendships and romantic relationships with the sooner iteration of the bot. One petition to maintain the sooner model of the bot gathered virtually six thousand signatories.
“For many of us, GPT-4o offers a unique and irreplaceable user experience, combining qualities and capabilities that we value, regardless of performance benchmarks,” the petitioners wrote within the change.org marketing campaign to maintain GPT-4o. “We continue to benefit from GPT-4o in ways that are distinct and meaningful.”
Whereas OpenAI finally restored the sooner model, these within the #keep4o motion have since instructed Fortune they had been apprehensive in regards to the firm routing customers to GPT-5, “without consent or notification.”
In accordance with Li, the announcement from OpenAI could possibly be making an attempt to sign one thing to those customers: “The very public announcement of it does make me think that they’re trying to signal something to users who are demanding this thing—like, ‘We hear you. We’re responding to your desires.’”
The shift can be not fully new; it builds upon a quieter replace to OpenAI’s Mannequin Spec earlier this 12 months. In February, OpenAI up to date the doc to calm down the principles round sexual and violent content material in what it known as a transfer away from “AI paternalism.” Up to date pointers on the time permitted the era of written erotica and different delicate materials in acceptable contexts. OpenAI additionally instructed Fortune that the announcement was a part of its plan to construct on the most recent launch of the Mannequin Spec, whereas sustaining boundaries in opposition to dangerous makes use of like deepfakes.
