ChatGPT for Teens is live. Here's how famed parenting expert Emily Oster says parents should approach it.

OpenAI seems to have solved the problem of adolescents lying about their age: if they type like they're under 18, it automatically assumes that they are — and restricts them to a teen version of ChatGPT.

"If I had to pick a word for how people are feeling about this moment, it's probably confused and anxious, which is not how we want parents to feel," Emily Oster, the founder of ParentData, a data-driven parenting and pregnancy resource, said at the ChatGPT for Teens Parent Forum.

OpenAI is trying to address these concerns with ChatGPT for Teens. Besides its age-estimation feature, which analyzes a user's language patterns, the questions they ask, and the time of day they use ChatGPT, ChatGPT for Teens also has a "study mode" to break down math problems into steps or create custom flashcards.

It also includes guardrails such as a more neutral tone of voice (to avoid ChatGPT sounding too friendly or romanticized), content restrictions, and notification tools to inform parents with linked accounts if their teens are asking about topics such as self-harm or eating disorders.

The goal, according to Allison Mishkin, head of child development at OpenAI, is to create a version of ChatGPT that is not only safer but also more age-appropriate for teens, but that also includes features that will directly benefit teens who need extra homework help or have a genuine interest in using AI tools.

Over the past few years, parents have expressed concerns about their teens' relationships to their screens. AI adds another dimension to the worry: what if it's yet another reason for their kids to remain glued to their devices?

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If it remains a complete mystery, Oster encouraged asking open-ended questions. "I would urge parents to come into that conversation without an aim to come out of it with some rules or controls," she said, which can hopefully get teens to share what they use AI for more freely.

"How do we give kids enough time to do the things that are really important — to do their homework, to sleep enough, to spend time with their families, to be outside?" she said. "I would encourage parents to think about that time displacement regardless of what your kid is doing on their computer."

One of the biggest controversies around AI is students using it to either outwardly cheat on assignments or do most of the thinking for them.

At the same time, she said everyone learns differently, and some might benefit from having the material repeated or explained in a different way. One father in California previously told Business Insider that he programmed ChatGPT to quiz his two daughters on their classroom materials until they're confident enough to pass their tests.

Just as it is for adults, AI is what you make of it. It's on parents to instill the right values in their kids and encourage them to use it as a helpful tool rather than a cheat code.