OpenAI has announced updates to the ChatGPT usage policy that will take effect in December. CEO Sam Altman revealed that the service will allow adult users to engage the chatbot for erotic scenarios.
"In December, when we fully implement age restrictions and adhere to our principle of treating adults as adults, we will permit further interactions, such as erotica for verified adult users," said Sam Altman.
In September, the company introduced a parental control system and age verification. According to Altman, this has allowed for a clear distinction between minors and adults and created conditions for expanding functionality.
Engadget reports that some users have already attempted to bypass restrictions by using ChatGPT for private conversations (NSFW). Now, the company effectively recognizes such scenarios as acceptable but only for verified adults.
This approach was also discussed during the DevDay 2025 event, where OpenAI announced the integration of third-party applications into ChatGPT. At that time, the company informed developers that support for adult (18+) applications in the chatbot would be available after implementing age verification and control.
These changes come amid criticism of OpenAI regarding the impact of ChatGPT on users' mental health. For instance, we reported on an incident where an American teenager was conversing with ChatGPT about methods of suicide. Tragically, the situation ended in a lawsuit against OpenAI by the boy's parents.
Another case involved a man in the USA with mental health issues who used ChatGPT to validate his paranoid thoughts. His conversations with the chatbot led to the murder of his mother and his own suicide.
Following these and similar incidents, Sam Altman stated that the company intentionally made ChatGPT more restrictive to responsibly address mental health issues. He acknowledged that this may have made the model less useful or enjoyable for users without mental health problems, but it was necessary for safety.
He added that now, having mitigated "serious mental health issues" and implemented new protective tools, OpenAI can safely ease restrictions in most cases.
It is expected that the company will successfully combine age restrictions and new features that will provide adult users with greater freedom to use the service while still protecting minors.