Tech Desk 
Jan 25, 2026
Meta has officially stopped teens’ access to its AI characters globally across all its apps, adding that it is not abandoning its efforts but wants to develop an updated version of AI characters for teens.
Speaking with TechCrunch, Meta said: "It heard from parents that they wanted more insights and control over their teens’ interactions with AI characters, which is why it decided to make these changes." The move comes days before a case against Meta is set to go to trial in New Mexico, in which the company is accused of not making an effort to protect kids from sexual exploitation on its apps.
Earlier in October 2025, the company previewed parental controls for AI characters, letting parents and guardians monitor topics and block access to certain characters. Meta said parents would be able to completely turn off chats with AI characters.
These features were set to release this year, but the company is now turning off AI characters altogether for teens while it updates the AI characters to a newer version.
In an updated blog post, the company added: “Starting in the coming weeks, teens will no longer be able to access AI characters across our apps until the updated experience is ready. This will apply to anyone who has given us a teen birthday, as well as people who claim to be adults but who we suspect are teens based on our age prediction technology."
The new characters will give age-appropriate responses and will stick to topics like education, sport, and hobbies. It is important to note that the new version of AI characters will be accessible to everyone, not just teens, when it launches. It will include parental controls.
