ChatGPT users will be able to generate porn from December
ChatGPT's erotica expansion is the latest move in the long-running AI rivalry between Mr Musk and Mr Altman
ChatGPT will now allow users to generate porn as it looks to compete with Elon Musk's 'chatbot girlfriends'.
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OpenAI, which owns the popular AI chatbot, revealed that the site will start allowing verified adults to access “erotica” from December.
Further details on what erotica tools will be offered are yet to be confirmed, but boss Sam Altman said the changes will allow the company to "treat adult users like adults".
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"Now that we have been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues and have new tools, we are going to be able to safely relax the restrictions in most cases,” Mr Altman wrote on X.
"As part of our 'treat adult users like adults' principle, we will allow even more, like erotica for verified adults.”
The explicit content rollout forms part of ChatGPT's plans to "age-gate more fully”, though how user's ages will be verified is currently unclear.
OpenAI has always employed a blanket ban on erotica until last year, when bosses were reported to be warming to the idea.
It comes months after Mr Musk announced his AI tool Grok would offer Ani - a chatbot girlfriend that could engage in sexual conversation.
After a few conversations with the blonde avatar, users could see it dressed in lingerie and also switch to “NSFW” mode – internet slang for “not safe for work”.
The anime-style bot garnered controversy for the fact it was available to 12-year-olds, as the Grok app could still be accessed by users aged 12 and above.
OpenAI official Joanne Jang stressed that ChatGPT would never offer deepfakes and "wasn't trying now to create AI porn”.
However, what might be allowed “depends on your definition of porn", she told US broadcaster NPR.
ChatGPT's erotica expansion is the latest move in the long-running AI rivalry between Mr Musk and Mr Altman.
The pair founded OpenAI in 2015, but Mr Musk left in 2018 following a disagreement over its direction.
The South African billionaire launched rival AI bot Grok in 2023, making it accessible via a standalone app and his social media platform X.
His creation had faced several controversies after it was found to make antisemitic remarks, as well as looking up Mr Musk’s personal opinions before providing answers on controversial topics.
The company said later that both issues had been fixed.
In July, campaigners warned that ChatGPT's “very human-like" responses had led increasing numbers of children to use the AI chatbot for companionship.
Research showed that one in eight children said they use the bots because they have nobody else to speak to.