We will do battle with AI chatbots as we did with Grok, says Starmer
Source: BBC Technology
We will do battle with AI chatbots as we did with Grok, says Starmer
5 hours ago
Zoe Kleinman, Technology editor, Adam Goldsmith and Claire Keenan
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Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to respond more quickly to close loopholes in laws designed to protect children online.
The prime minister said that while the government had “won” the “battle” with X – after threatening the platform with action over its AI assistant Grok creating non‑consensual sexual deepfakes – it was now time to do the same with “all AI bots”.
In addition to tightening legislation around chat‑bots, government proposals also include a measure requiring tech giants to preserve all of the data on a child’s phone if the child dies.
Opponents accused the government of “inaction” and have called for Parliament to be given a vote on the social‑media ban for children.
Sir Keir said no online platform will get a “free pass” over the issue of children’s online safety as he promised to “crack down on the addictive elements of social media.”
The main new proposals are
- Coroners would have to notify Ofcom of the death of every child aged 5‑18 so they can ensure tech companies do not delete their data, in case it is relevant to the way they died.
- Artificial‑intelligence (AI) chatbots would be included in the Online Safety Act.
- New legislation around technology would be passed much quicker.
The government has now said it wants to create new legal powers so it can take “immediate action” following the consultation.
Technology Secretary Liz Kendall told the BBC’s Today programme that, while a proper consultation is essential, the government should still be able to act swiftly once a decision has been made.
“The first time the Online Safety Act was discussed I think was in a green paper in 2017 – that process is too long, because the technology is changing so quickly,” she said.
“MPs have a Finance Bill every year with the budget – I think we need to think like that with technology because it is changing so fast.”
The Online Safety Act – which became law in 2023 – was written before the release of AI chatbots such as ChatGPT, and the government says it intends to close loopholes in the legislation so the tech is included.
Other measures being considered include:
- Preventing children from using virtual private networks (VPNs) to get around age checks.
- Amending the law so chatbots must protect users from illegal content.
In an article on Substack, Sir Keir wrote:
“In the past 20+ years, social media has evolved to become something completely different from the simple, stripped‑back pages it was in its conception.
And in that evolution, it has become something that is quietly harming our children.”
The prime minister added he wanted to “crack down on the addictive elements of social media, stop the auto‑play, the never‑ending scrolling, that keeps our children hooked on their screens for hours, and stop kids getting around age limits.”
“And if that means a fight with the big social‑media companies, then bring it on,” he said.
“I never wanted another parent to ever be in my position” – Ellen Roome
There are also plans to change rules on how children’s social‑media data is stored under the Crime and Policing Bill, after the Jools’ Law campaign.
In 2022, Ellen Roome’s son Jools died aged 14. She believes he was trying an internet challenge which went wrong, but has never been able to access his data to prove it.
- Under current rules, a child’s data must be requested from tech companies within 12 months of their death by either a coroner or the police.
- Bereaved parents say that, by the time this happens, the record of what their child has been doing online has already been deleted.
New rules would require the data to be preserved within five days if it might be relevant to the cause of death, hopefully giving more families some answers.
“This going forward will help other bereaved families,” Roome said. “What we now need to do is stop the harm happening in the first place. This is really relevant when a child dies, but we need to stop them dying in the first place.”
Andy Burrows, chief executive of the Molly Rose Foundation (a UK‑based suicide‑prevention charity), said he strongly welcomed the government’s ambition to move quickly but added that the prime minister must go further.
“Sir Keir Starmer should 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,” he said.
Lord Nash, a Conservative former minister who has been campaigning in the Lords for tighter social‑media controls for children, welcomed the adoption of Jools’ Law by the government. However, he warned that to avoid “future tragedies” the government must raise the age limit to 16 for the most harmful platforms now.
Shadow education secretary Laura Trott described the consultation announcement as “inaction”, and said Britain was “lagging behind”.
“I am clear that we should stop under‑16s accessing these platforms,” she said.
Liberal Democrat spokeswoman Munira Wilson also accused the government of continuing to “kick the can down the road” and called for a “much clearer, firm timeline” on when action will be taken.
Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said the government was “determined to give children the childhood they deserve and to prepare th…”.
Original excerpt
“…em for the future at time of rapid technological change” and would “not wait” to take the action families needed.
Additional reporting by Laura Cress.
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