Concerns around sexual content means there won’t be an erotic version of ChatGPT

Users looking to bring a little spice to the best AI phones, take note – OpenAI has shelved plans to introduce a sexualised adult mode for ChatGPT, following internal concerns about the potential risks of explicit AI interactions with an erotic chatbot.

According to a report by The Financial Times (via The Verge), the feature has been paused indefinitely, after pushback from both employees and investors. Concerns reportedly centre on the potential harmful effects of sexualised AI content, including wider societal impact and user wellbeing.

OpenAI is said to want more time to research the long-term effects of sexually explicit chats and emotional attachment before making any product decisions. However, the report notes there is currently no clear evidence on those impacts.

The move also reflects a wider shift inside the company. According to the same report, CEO Sam Altman previously described a “code red” moment late last year, as competition from rivals like Google and Anthropic intensified – prompting a renewed focus on core products.

This decision also follows reports that OpenAI has stepped back from other initiatives, including its text-to-video AI platform Sora, citing internal discussions about broader research priorities.

Zoom out, and OpenAI isn’t alone in facing scrutiny over sexualised AI content. X, owned by Elon Musk, has introduced new restrictions on its Grok chatbot after concerns around AI-generated explicit imagery – X now blocks users in certain regions from generating or editing images of real people in sexualised contexts, where it would breach local laws. The change came following regulatory scrutiny and concerns over the spread of AI-generated sexual images, including deepfakes.

Even with those safeguards, questions remain over how such restrictions will be enforced, and whether users could bypass them using tools like VPNs.

Overall, it seems that sexual content remains one of the most sensitive and contested areas of AI development. And, for now at least, OpenAI appears to be putting its erotic chatbot experiment on ice.

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Esat Dedezade Contributor

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Esat has been a gadget fan ever since his tiny four-year-old brain was captivated by a sound-activated dancing sunflower. From there it was a natural progression to a Sega Mega Drive, a brief obsession with hedgehogs, and a love for all things tech. After 7 years as a writer and deputy editor for Stuff, Esat ventured out into the corporate world, spending three years as Editor of Microsoft's European News Centre. Now a freelance writer, his appetite for shiny gadgets has no bounds. Oh, and like all good human beings, he's very fond of cats.