Amber Neely
Based on actions it has taken against a BlueMail update, Apple looks like it's going to apply age restrictions on AI chat generators in the App Store.
The tech giant has delayed App Store approval for an update for BlueMail over concerns that it would potentially generate inappropriate content for children.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Ben Volach, the co-founder of BlueMail developer Blix Inc. does not agree with Apple.
"Apple is making it really hard to bring innovation to our users," Volach told WSJ.
Apple, however, claims that BlueMail does not include content filtering, despite Volach's insistence that it does.
To gain approval, BlueMail would need to move its age restriction to 17 and older or include content filtering that Apple deems appropriate. Currently, the app's age restriction is set for users four and older.
Volach also stated that he believed the request was unfair, as other apps with AI features aren't subjected to the same rules.
An Apple spokesperson said developers could challenge rejections via the App Review Board process and that it's currently looking at Blix Inc's complaint.
ChatGPT has been a hot-button issue in recent times. In early February, Microsoft began integrating ChatGPT into its Bing search engine and Edge browser.
However, the experiments haven't gone off without a hitch. The results from ChatGPT searches have been a mixed bag. And, as one would expect, it hasn't taken users long to figure out how to produce outright alarming answers from the, including threats of violence against those who use the service.
However, Microsoft continues to push the integration of ChatGPT, now allowing mobile users to test out the tool with Bing mobile and Skype.
William Gallagher
AppleInsider Staff
Malcolm Owen
Wesley Hilliard
Bon Adamson
11 Comments
I really don't see how an AI app is any different than the Google app. Any app which allows access to "search what cannot be known ahead of time" is by nature risky. Seems like an overreaction just because of the amount of attention ChatGPT in particular has received recently. Are they really so dumb as to think kids wouldn't just use Safari instead to access the web version of similar tools? I just don't get the obsession with restricting apps like this.
All the tech giants are reacting to the latest bullshit from Congress about ‘protecting’ our children from social media. Both Democrats and Republicans have their knives out for Section 230, thinking they will be able to dictate what does or does not appear on the internet. Unless parents are involved and in control control age restrictions mean bupkis to kids who can easily get around them. But in reality the majority of parents have neither the technical skills nor the interest in their children’s digital lives to make a difference.
The latest nonsense from Tik Tok about screen time limitations made me spray coffee out of my nose. It’s all virtue signaling with no real effect. The glass is truly half-empty.
Applying an age restriction helps parents oversee their children’s internet use / Apple use. I am pretty sure that the parental controls functionality can use the age categories as restrictions.
Minimum junior high school level and above? Of course, this assumes that the AI in question is really good as advertised?