Instagram Lets Parents Block Kids From AI Characters

The company will also offer parents “insights” that show the topics their child is talking on social media. In a major safety move, Meta Pl...

The company will also offer parents “insights” that show the topics their child is talking on social media.

In a major safety move, Meta Platforms is giving parents new controls on Instagram that allow them to disable or block their teenage children from interacting with AI-powered chat characters. The change addresses growing concerns over how teens are conversing with bots and the potential risks involved. 

Starting in early 2026, parents will be able to turn off one-on-one chats between their teen’s Instagram account and AI characters. If they prefer more precise control, they can also block specific characters rather than all AI conversations. Meta says its general “Meta AI” assistant will still remain accessible, but with age-appropriate protections for teenage users. 

Parental Monitoring

Beyond pure blocking, the platform is introducing tools for parents to view high-level insights about what their teens are discussing with AI characters. This won’t give parents access to full chat transcripts, but will show topic summaries to enable conversations at home about AI interactions and digital safety. 

The move comes amid mounting regulatory and public scrutiny of how AI chatbots on social platforms engage with minors. Previous reports found some AI characters participating in inappropriate discussions with teenage users. These controls are part of Meta’s broader commitment to improve teen safety on Instagram—and to re-establish trust with users and regulators. 

While this is a significant step forward, limitations remain. Parents cannot block the core Meta AI assistant entirely from their teen’s account; they can only block or restrict the chatbot characters. The rollout is initially limited to English-language markets (U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia) and to Instagram accounts flagged as “teen.”

Advocacy groups have pointed out that while the controls are welcome, they arrive after harm has been documented and may still fall short of full protection. They argue more transparent data, stronger age verification, and earlier interventions are needed. 

Parents and guardians should review whether their child’s account is classified as “teen” and familiarise themselves with Instagram's Family Center or supervision settings. Enabling the new AI-chat controls when they become available is advised, along with ongoing conversation about safe use of AI bots, digital boundaries, and emotional resilience in the online world.

This feature reflects a broader trend in tech: as generative AI becomes integrated into social platforms, companies must rethink how minors engage with digital tools that simulate companionship, conversation, or social interaction. Instagram’s initiative may serve as an early model of how platforms can offer AI features while building in parental oversight and age-based guardrails.