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As the legislative session kicks off, one priority for lawmakers may be the use of AI by minors.
At a Senate informational briefing last week, Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole shared screenshots of inappropriate messages between an AI chatbot and a 12-year-old girl who lives in Hawaiʻi.
To make sense of this incident, The Conversation spoke with Justin Lai, an educational technologist at Hawai‘i School for Girls at La Pietra, who presented at the briefing on the basics of generative AI — a field where many children know more than their parents.
Most American teens have interacted with a chatbot, and nearly a third say they use AI chatbots daily. Lai spoke about what this incident means for Hawaiʻi.
Both Keohokalole and Rep. Trish La Chica plan to introduce legislation to regulate the use of AI.
This story aired on The Conversation on Jan. 21, 2026. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m.
