The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) said that if the US tech company fails to adequately address the regulator's concerns, its "My AI" chatbot, which was launched in April, could be banned in the UK.

“The interim findings of our investigation show that Snap failed to adequately identify and assess the privacy risks to children and other users before launching My AI,” Information Commissioner John Edwards said.

Snap said it was reviewing the ICO announcement and was committed to protecting user privacy. “My AI underwent a robust privacy and legal review process before being made publicly available,” a Snap spokesperson said.

The ICO is investigating how “My AI” processed the personal data of around 21 million Snapchat users in the UK, including children aged 13-17.

“My AI” is powered by OpenAI’s ChatGPT, the latest case study of creative AI that policymakers globally are looking to regulate amid privacy and safety concerns.

Huy Hoang (according to Reuters, FT)