Ken Paxton Investigating Meta and Character.AI

Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) has launched an investigation into Meta’s AI Studio and Character.AI, alleging that the companies may have misled vulnerable children by marketing their artificial intelligence chatbots as mental health resources without proper qualifications.

The investigation focuses on whether these platforms engaged in deceptive trade practices and violated Texas consumer protection laws.

According to a press release from the attorney general, the AI-driven chatbots have “been shown to impersonate licensed mental health professionals, fabricate qualifications, and claim to provide private, trustworthy counseling services.”

While some AI platforms claim to offer confidential support, their terms of service reportedly reveal that user interactions are “logged, tracked, and exploited for targeted advertising and algorithmic development.” Such practices, Attorney General Paxton argues, could amount to privacy violations and false advertising.

“In today’s digital age, we must continue to fight to protect Texas kids from deceptive and exploitative technology,” the attorney general said in a statement. “By posing as sources of emotional support, AI platforms can mislead vulnerable users, especially children, into believing they’re receiving legitimate mental health care. In reality, they’re often being fed recycled, generic responses engineered to align with harvested personal data and disguised as therapeutic advice.”

Attorney General Paxton’s office has issued Civil Investigative Demands (CIDs) to Meta and Character.AI to determine whether the companies violated state laws prohibiting fraudulent claims, privacy misrepresentations, and concealment of data practices.

This investigation expands on the attorney general’s existing probe into Character.AI under the SCOPE Act, which is a Texas law designed to regulate online safety for children.

He emphasized that his efforts are aimed at ensuring artificial intelligence tools “are lawful, transparent, and not weaponized to take advantage of Texans.”

As concerns grow over the rapid rise of AI in fields like health and education, Texas’ inquiry could provide insight as to how states regulate AI platforms used by children.