New Instagram AI will Flag Teens Posing as Adults Online

Instagram has begun testing AI technology in the U.S. to better identify whether users are teenagers or adults, in an effort to enhance safety for young users.

Announced on April 21, the Meta-owned platform said its AI will proactively flag suspected teen accounts—even those claiming to be adults—and automatically move them into Instagram Teen Accounts, which feature age-appropriate protections.

"We’ve been using artificial intelligence to help determine age ranges for some time, but leveraging it in this way is a big change. We’re taking steps to ensure our technology is accurate and that we are correctly placing teens we identify into protective, age-appropriate settings, but in case we make a mistake, we’re giving people the option to change their settings," Meta said in a blog post.

Instagram Teen Accounts—introduced last year—limit who can message teens, restrict sensitive content, and prompt breaks after extended use.

They also include a "sleep mode" that mutes notifications from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. Currently, over 54 million teens worldwide are enrolled, with 97% of 13–15-year-olds opting to keep these settings active.