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members of US Senate seeking answers from toy companies that implementation artificial intelligence In products made for young children.
senators Marsha BlackburnR-Tennessee, and Richard BlumenthalD-Connecticut sent a joint letter to the CEOs of Little Learners Toys, Mattel, Miko, Curio, Foltoy and Kei Robot, asking for information about the companies’ data-sharing policies, whether they test toys for potential psychological and developmental effects on children, and what safety devices they have in place to prevent. sexual or inappropriate material In their products, according to nbc news,
“While AI has incredible potential to benefit children’s learning and access, experts have raised concerns about AI toys and the lack of research done to understand the full impact of these products on our children,” the senators wrote in the joint letter.
The letters read that toymakers “have a unique and profound influence on childhood – and with that influence comes responsibility.”
“Your company should not choose profit over the safety of children,” the letters said.
letters arrive In view of NBC News And US Public Interest Group Education Fund ReportPublished last week, it alleges that several AI-incorporated toys from various brands have the ability to engage in sexual or otherwise inappropriate interactions with users.
In one example, Miriat’s Miilu plush toy was successfully induced to receive instructions on how to light a match or sharpen a knife.
Some of the toys produced by the companies targeted by the letter are intended for children under the age of three. In addition to questioning the nature of interactions in toys, senators raised concerns that children could become overly attached to or addicted to AI characters.
The letter asks recipient companies to provide detailed information about their safety devices, documenting how they prevent products from “generating sexually explicit, violent, or otherwise inappropriate material for children.”
It also asks about data collection and how that data is used by companies. Miko said its products store “the user’s face, voice and emotional state” in its servers for up to three years.
Curio, one of the companies that received the letter, told NBC News that it “looks forward to collaborating with Senator Blackburn and Senator Blumenthal on this important issue. Child safety is the team’s top priority, and we take the concerns raised by families and public officials very seriously.”
Independent Comments are requested from companies that received the letter.