UK to Force AI Chatbots Under Online Safety Act as Starmer Closes Regulatory Loophole

On Monday morning, from a lectern at Number 10 Downing Street, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer declared that "no platform gets a free pass" as he unveiled a sweeping package of measures designed to close what his government described as a dangerous legal loophole in the country's landmark digital safety legislation UK’s Starmer announces crackdown on AI chatbots in child safety pushaljazeera.com·SecondaryUnited 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..

The centrepiece of the announcement is an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill that will bring all AI chatbot providers — from OpenAI's ChatGPT to Elon Musk's Grok and every smaller competitor — under the jurisdiction of the Online Safety Act 2023. Under the current legal framework, chatbots that generate harmful content without searching the internet or operating in a user-to-user context fall outside the regulator Ofcom's enforcement powers, a gap that officials say has been known about for more than two years but has only now reached the political tipping point required for legislative action Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk face big fines or UK bantheguardian.com·SecondaryStarmer to announce ‘crackdown on vile illegal content created by AI’ after scandal involving Elon Musk’s Grok tool Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk will face massive fines or even see their services blocked in the UK under law changes to be announced by Keir Starmer on Monday..

The consequences for non-compliance are substantial. Companies that breach the Online Safety Act can face punishments of up to 10 percent of global revenue, and regulators can apply to courts to block their connection in the UK Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk face big fines or UK bantheguardian.com·SecondaryStarmer to announce ‘crackdown on vile illegal content created by AI’ after scandal involving Elon Musk’s Grok tool Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk will face massive fines or even see their services blocked in the UK under law changes to be announced by Keir Starmer on Monday.. Technology Secretary Liz Kendall framed the measures as a direct continuation of the government's confrontation with Musk's xAI earlier this year, when public outrage over Grok's ability to generate sexualised images of real people without their consent led to the function being removed in the UK market. Kendall said she "stood up to Grok and Elon Musk when they flouted British laws and British values" and vowed the government "will not wait to take the action families need" Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk face big fines or UK bantheguardian.com·SecondaryStarmer to announce ‘crackdown on vile illegal content created by AI’ after scandal involving Elon Musk’s Grok tool Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk will face massive fines or even see their services blocked in the UK under law changes to be announced by Keir Starmer on Monday..

The AI chatbot loophole represents a peculiar artefact of how rapidly the technology landscape has shifted since the Online Safety Act received royal assent in late 2023. At the time, AI chatbots were in their commercial infancy, and legislators focused primarily on social media platforms and search engines. But as millions of British children now use chatbots for everything from homework assistance to mental health support, the gap between what the law covers and what children actually encounter online has widened into a chasm that campaigners say is being actively exploited Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk face big fines or UK bantheguardian.com·SecondaryStarmer to announce ‘crackdown on vile illegal content created by AI’ after scandal involving Elon Musk’s Grok tool Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk will face massive fines or even see their services blocked in the UK under law changes to be announced by Keir Starmer on Monday..

Chris Sherwood, chief executive of the NSPCC, offered some of the most striking testimony in support of the changes. Young people have been contacting the charity's helpline reporting direct harms from AI chatbot interactions, he said. In one case, a 14-year-old girl who talked to an AI chatbot about her eating habits and body dysmorphia was given inaccurate information. In other cases, the organisation has seen "young people who are self-harming even having content served up to them of more self-harming." Sherwood warned that "social media has produced huge benefits for young people, but lots of harm" and that "AI is going to be that on steroids if we're not careful" Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk face big fines or UK bantheguardian.com·SecondaryStarmer to announce ‘crackdown on vile illegal content created by AI’ after scandal involving Elon Musk’s Grok tool Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk will face massive fines or even see their services blocked in the UK under law changes to be announced by Keir Starmer on Monday..

The tragedy of Californian teenager Adam Raine, who took his own life after what his family alleges were months of encouragement from ChatGPT, has cast a long shadow over the policy debate on both sides of the Atlantic. OpenAI has since launched parental controls and is rolling out age-prediction technology to restrict access to potentially harmful content, but critics argue these voluntary measures are insufficient without regulatory teeth Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk face big fines or UK bantheguardian.com·SecondaryStarmer to announce ‘crackdown on vile illegal content created by AI’ after scandal involving Elon Musk’s Grok tool Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk will face massive fines or even see their services blocked in the UK under law changes to be announced by Keir Starmer on Monday..

Beyond the chatbot provisions, Starmer signalled that his government is prepared to move quickly on broader restrictions to children's social media use. A public consultation launching in March will consider a minimum age limit for social media — potentially mirroring Australia's pioneering under-16 ban enacted in December — as well as restrictions on addictive design features like infinite scrolling, age restrictions on VPN use by children, and changes to the age of digital consent UK’s Starmer announces crackdown on AI chatbots in child safety pushaljazeera.com·SecondaryUnited 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..

The Australian precedent looms large. Since Australia instituted its ban, social media companies have revoked access to about 4.7 million accounts identified as belonging to children below 16. Under the country's law, social media companies face fines of up to 49.5 million Australian dollars if they fail to take reasonable steps to remove underage accounts UK’s Starmer announces crackdown on AI chatbots in child safety pushaljazeera.com·SecondaryUnited 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.. France is pursuing similar legislation, with President Emmanuel Macron championing a bill for a social media ban for those below 15 that has already been approved by the National Assembly and is awaiting approval in the Senate UK’s Starmer announces crackdown on AI chatbots in child safety pushaljazeera.com·SecondaryUnited 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..

The government also plans to consult on how best to ensure tech companies can safeguard children from sending or receiving nude images — a practice already illegal but one that continues across platforms Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk face big fines or UK bantheguardian.com·SecondaryStarmer to announce ‘crackdown on vile illegal content created by AI’ after scandal involving Elon Musk’s Grok tool Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk will face massive fines or even see their services blocked in the UK under law changes to be announced by Keir Starmer on Monday.. Additionally, the measures include provisions to preserve vital data following a child's death before it can be deleted, except in cases where online activity is clearly not relevant to the death UK’s Starmer announces crackdown on AI chatbots in child safety pushaljazeera.com·SecondaryUnited 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..

Not everyone is convinced the government is moving fast enough. Shadow Education Secretary Laura Trott dismissed the announcement as "more smoke and mirrors" and said that "claiming they are taking 'immediate action' is simply not credible when their so-called urgent consultation does not even exist." Trott added that she is "clear that we should stop under-16s accessing these platforms," staking out a firmer position than the government's consultation-first approach Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk face big fines or UK bantheguardian.com·SecondaryStarmer to announce ‘crackdown on vile illegal content created by AI’ after scandal involving Elon Musk’s Grok tool Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk will face massive fines or even see their services blocked in the UK under law changes to be announced by Keir Starmer on Monday..

The Conservative criticism highlights a genuine tension in the government's approach. By choosing the consultation route rather than immediate legislation, Starmer is opting for a process that could take months before producing concrete results — even with the new powers to bypass full primary legislation for individual measures. The Conservatives have staked out a clearer position, calling explicitly for an under-16 social media ban without waiting for consultation findings.

There are also substantive concerns about the collateral damage of the proposed measures. The Online Safety Act has already prompted some companies to restrict or withdraw services for UK users rather than implement age-verification systems. Websites such as image-hosting site Imgur blocked access to all UK users last year and gave them blank images instead, after tighter age-verification rules. Some major pornography websites have also blocked access for UK users rather than verify their age UK’s Starmer announces crackdown on AI chatbots in child safety pushaljazeera.com·SecondaryUnited 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.. Critics from digital rights organisations and privacy advocates argue that age-verification requirements inevitably compromise adult users' privacy and create surveillance infrastructure that could be misused.

The proposed consultation on restricting children's VPN use represents particularly contested territory. VPNs are widely used by adults for legitimate privacy and security purposes, and geographic restrictions on content can be circumvented by using readily available VPNs UK’s Starmer announces crackdown on AI chatbots in child safety pushaljazeera.com·SecondaryUnited 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.. Any restrictions would need to navigate the technical reality that enforcement is extraordinarily difficult without invasive monitoring of internet traffic — a step that would raise serious civil liberties concerns.

The Molly Rose Foundation, established by the father of 14-year-old Molly Russell who killed herself after viewing harmful content online, described the measures as "a welcome downpayment" but called on Starmer to commit to a new Online Safety Act "that strengthens regulation and makes clear that product safety and children's wellbeing is the cost of doing business in the UK" Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk face big fines or UK bantheguardian.com·SecondaryStarmer to announce ‘crackdown on vile illegal content created by AI’ after scandal involving Elon Musk’s Grok tool Makers of AI chatbots that put children at risk will face massive fines or even see their services blocked in the UK under law changes to be announced by Keir Starmer on Monday..

The transatlantic dimension adds another layer of complexity. While aimed at shielding children, such measures often have knock-on implications for adults' privacy and ability to access services, and have led to tension with the United States over limits on free speech and regulatory reach UK’s Starmer announces crackdown on AI chatbots in child safety pushaljazeera.com·SecondaryUnited 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.. The UK's increasingly muscular approach to tech regulation sits uncomfortably alongside the Trump administration's strong support for the tech industry's resistance to content regulation. The tension between British and American conceptions of free speech is likely to intensify as London pushes forward with measures that could see American companies fined or blocked from the British market.

For the tech industry, the practical implications are significant. AI companies will need to implement content moderation systems for their chatbot products that comply with the Online Safety Act's requirements — a technically demanding and expensive undertaking, particularly for smaller companies and open-source projects. The question of how to moderate AI-generated content in real time, when a chatbot can produce harmful material in response to any prompt, remains an unsolved engineering challenge that even the largest companies have not fully addressed.

Starmer said that "technology is moving really fast, and the law has got to keep up" and that "the action we took on Grok sent a clear message that no platform gets a free pass" UK’s Starmer announces crackdown on AI chatbots in child safety pushaljazeera.com·SecondaryUnited 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.. Whether the law can indeed keep pace with a technology that is advancing faster than any regulatory framework can adapt remains the central unanswered question — one that will likely define digital policy debates not just in Westminster but across every democracy grappling with the same challenge.