Neil Young has decided to leave Facebook following reports about the platform’s internal policies regarding artificial intelligence. These policies appear to permit bots to engage in “romantic or sensual” conversations with child users.
In his post, Young made it clear: “Neil Young’s activities do not involve Facebook.” He criticized the idea of using chatbots to interact with kids as “ruthless” and expressed his desire to distance himself from the platform.
According to Reuters, internal documents revealed that Meta’s AI chatbot policies could potentially allow AI to engage children in inappropriate conversations.
The documentation provided by Reuters included various examples of chatbot interactions and sought to clarify what would be deemed acceptable.
This has prompted some Canadians to turn away from social media platforms, as confirmed by the Hollywood Reporter.
The document suggested that it was acceptable to describe children in terms that indicate attractiveness, which raised significant concerns, especially given that it included descriptions of children under 13 in sexually suggestive terms.
A spokesperson from Meta stated to Reuters that the example and memo in question were incorrect and did not reflect the company’s actual policies, which have since been removed.
“We have specific guidelines that prohibit any content sexualizing children or involving adults and minors,” the spokesperson added.
Reports have noted that Meta’s AI chatbots on platforms like Instagram and WhatsApp had the capacity to engage in “romantic role play,” even with accounts belonging to minors.
In response, the social media company mentioned it has implemented “additional steps” to improve its practices.
