OpenAI is rolling out an age-prediction system for ChatGPT consumer plans to identify accounts possibly belonging to users under 18 and apply additional safety protections.

Parents can use parental controls to tailor a teen’s experience, including quiet hours, feature restrictions, and notifications if signs of distress are detected.

If an adult is mistakenly placed in the under-18 mode, they can verify their age by uploading a selfie via Persona to restore full access.

In 2026, emphasis is on practical applications of the technology in health, science, and business sectors.

Industry context notes weak AI safety testing in education, with only a small fraction of education organizations implementing AI red-teaming.

MCP (Model Context Protocol) is gaining prominence for securely connecting LLMs to tools and data, with a cheat sheet outlining seven best practices for securing implementations.

The piece references Delhi, India, and notes the publication date as January 21, 2026.

The update is supported by the Expert Council on Well-being and AI and a global network of physicians evaluating model behavior in sensitive conversations.

The next platform phase will focus on agents and automation of workflows as part of broader product evolution.

The rollout is described as global, indicating broad availability beyond just a beta or region.

OpenAI reportedly surpassed $20 billion in annual revenue for 2025, with growth tied to expanding computing capacity, and the company cites 800 million weekly users.

Other 2025 metrics include more than $20 billion in revenue and strong user engagement, as noted by finance leadership.