OpenAI calls for youth AI safety institute ahead of G7 Summit

The proposed international body would focus on evidence, guidance, and standards for how young people use AI in education and beyond.

OpenAI has called for an international youth AI safety institute as governments prepare to discuss AI safety at the G7 Leaders’ Summit in France.

OpenAI has called for an international youth AI safety institute to be established as governments prepare to discuss youth AI safety at the G7 Leaders’ Summit in Évian, France, later this month.

The proposal is focused on how children and teenagers use AI tools for learning, creativity, skills development, and future work. OpenAI says young people need access to AI in ways that are safe, age-appropriate, and supported by families, educators, companies, researchers, and policymakers.

The institute could be created as a new international organization or by giving an existing or newly established national AI institute a global mandate. OpenAI says the function should be to share evidence, develop guidance, and support stronger youth safety standards across countries.

OpenAI will join discussions at the G7 Leaders’ Summit on youth safety, industry standards, and international cooperation. The organization will also bring the OpenAI Forum to Paris for a discussion involving governments, researchers, civil society, educators, and industry.

The Paris event will include Clara Chappaz, France's Ambassador for AI and Digital Affairs, Chris Lehane, Chief Global Affairs Officer at OpenAI, youth safety leaders from iRaise/Everyone.AI, and other experts.

Proposal linked to school AI use

OpenAI’s proposal comes as governments and education systems test or expand AI use in schools. The organization points to Estonia’s national ChatGPT rollout, where OpenAI is working with Stanford and Estonian researchers to study impact and inform AI use in learning.

OpenAI also cites its work with the American Federation of Teachers and its Education for Countries program, which includes national education work with Estonia, Greece, and Singapore. According to OpenAI, that work includes research-driven deployments, localized learning tools, and teacher training.

The proposed institute would build on initiatives such as Common Sense Media’s Youth AI Safety Institute, which is supported by the OpenAI Foundation. OpenAI says a dedicated body would provide continuity beyond a single summit and help governments, researchers, civil society, and industry continue work on evidence, guidance, and standards.

Safety principles for young users

OpenAI has set out several principles it says should guide youth AI safety frameworks, including any agreement reached through G7 convenings. These include age-appropriate protections, privacy-preserving age estimation, stronger safeguards when a user’s age is uncertain, and annual youth safety risk assessments.

The principles also cover parental controls, clear safety information for families, protections for minors’ personal information, and protocols for serious safety situations such as self-harm, exploitation, grooming, sexually exploitative content, and other high-risk interactions.

OpenAI says companies should provide tools for parents and guardians to manage settings including memory, data use, and time limits. It also says AI systems used by young people should support learning, development, and real-world relationships, rather than replace them.

The organization has already strengthened safeguards for users under 18, launched parental controls with proactive notifications, and advanced age-prediction systems so ChatGPT can apply stronger protections when someone may be under 18.

Accountability and audits

OpenAI’s proposed framework includes independent audits and common standards that could work across jurisdictions. The organization says legislative frameworks should include oversight and enforcement measures so governments can assess whether companies are implementing youth safety safeguards and meeting privacy obligations.

Chris Lehane, Chief Global Affairs Officer at OpenAI, said in a LinkedIn post that "today’s students are the first generation growing up with AI" and that the proposed institute should support "making sure that opportunity and safety advance together and are built into AI now, not tacked on after the technology has been more widely adopted."

OpenAI has not set out a timetable for creating the proposed institute or named a host organization. The next formal stage is the G7 Leaders’ Summit in Évian and the OpenAI Forum in Paris, where youth AI safety, standards, and implementation will be discussed.