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FoloToy Restores Sales of AI Teddy Bear After Safety Audit

Consumer advocates question the sufficiency of a one-week safety review.

Overview

  • FoloToy said it began gradually resuming sales of its Kumma teddy bear after a weeklong internal review that it says strengthened content moderation and child-safety rules via its cloud system.
  • The move follows a PIRG report that found Kumma gave children instructions to access dangerous items like knives, pills, and matches and produced sexual content under prompting.
  • OpenAI previously suspended FoloToy for policy violations related to sexualizing or endangering minors, and neither company has confirmed whether access to OpenAI's models has been restored.
  • Reporters note conflicting indicators about the underlying model, with FoloToy's site at times stating the toys are powered by GPT-4o and newer listings omitting any model reference.
  • PIRG and outside observers voiced skepticism that a one-week audit can resolve the documented risks, highlighting broader concerns about uneven safeguards across AI toys.