GenAI & Child Online Safety: Shaping a Safer Digital Future Together

Gen AI and Child Online Safety

Tech Coalition and Safe Online: Funding innovative research on Gen AI

The Tech Coalition Safe Online Research Fund is going into its fourth year!

Ongoing collaboration between Safe Online and the Tech Coalition will center the Research Fund’s efforts on generative AI , ensuring we make meaningful progress in this critical area. While this year’s funding is at a smaller scale than past years – USD$220K – we are applying a more targeted approach for amplifying impact by honing in on one topic and applying the approaches and structures for industry-researcher engagement that we have jointly built over the past three years.

An Anticipatory Step Supporting Independent Research

The Tech Coalition and Safe Online identified a crucial need as GenAI is rapidly developing, to increase the sparse research landscape on the intersections of GenAI and online child sexual exploitation and abuse (CSEA).

The first project, announced at the Tech Coalition’s UK generative AI briefing, will be led by the University of Kent. The study will build on the work Kent has begun as part of the first cohort of the Research Fund with increased collaboration with tech industry. The focus will be on the proliferation of AI-generated child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and its potential impact on attitudes, norms, and behaviors among those who engage with CSAM. This research will also explore how the ecosystems of prevention and perpetration may respond to these emerging threats.

Youth Voices on AI: Shaping a Safer Digital Future

This project aims to directly engage children and youth in shaping AI development and regulation, particularly around online CSEA prevention. Led by Western Sydney University’s Young and Resilient Research Centre, the initiative will gather youth perspectives on AI, develop a “Youth Constitution for AI,” and inform policymakers about young people’s views on AI-related risks and safeguards.

The core focus of the project is aligning AI development with the values and safety concerns of young users. By understanding how youth perceive AI’s benefits and risks, particularly in relation to CSEA, the project will provide key insights for ethical AI development and governance. This initiative seeks to not only prevent online harms but also foster a generation of young people informed and engaged in shaping the future of AI.

GenAI misuse: Child-centered perspectives on risks and harms

This project, led by SaferNet Brasil, focuses on addressing the rising misuse of generative AI tools to create and share CSAM and self-generated explicit content by teenagers. 

By involving adolescents in semi-structured interviews and participatory workshops, the project aims to create a nuanced understanding of these emerging practices and inform the development of child-centered safety policies. The findings will be shared with tech companies, enabling them to improve safety strategies, provide risk mitigation tools, and address the misuse of AI for harassment and exploitation. The project will also use findings to raise awareness through advocacy, with a focus on preventing online exploitation and fostering child participation in these efforts.

Moving Forward: New Opportunities for Multi-Stakeholder Collaboration

This round of the Research Fund marks a critical development in understanding the benefits for children and young people of genAI technologies as well as the risks associated with AI-generated content, and these projects are kicking off now through the beginning of 2025. The goal is to foster collaboration among key stakeholders—ranging from child safety advocates to law enforcement and tech companies—ensuring that the potential dangers of genAI are met with informed, actionable responses.

See more stories from our family of grantees

What is digital safety and how do we measure it?

A recent white paper by the World Economic Forum’s Global Coalition for Digital Safety highlights the critical need for assessing digital safety. It provides a roadmap to navigate the complexities of measuring digital safety in the context of ongoing technological advancements and evolving regulatory frameworks.

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Press Release: Survivors and allies demand urgent action to prevent digital harms and keep children safe online

Press Release

Survivors and allies demand urgent action to prevent digital harms and keep children safe online

World leaders urged to seize historic opportunity at the inaugural Global Ministerial on Ending Violence Against Children to make bold commitments to create a safe digital world for children and young people

November 6, 2024 [Bogota, Colombia]:

Today, survivors and allies came together to demand urgent action from world leaders to address the growing threat of online child abuse and ensure a safe digital future for children.

Safe Online, the Brave Movement, and WeProtect Global Alliance, along with 15+ partners, hosted the Satellite event ‘Safe Digital Futures for Children’. The event, held at the margins of the inaugural Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children, aimed to build momentum and urge governments to end all forms of violence against children, including online violence.

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Thorn 2

Our grantees Thorn Global CSAM Classifier Development Program Countries involved:United States of America Supported by Safe Online’s investments, Thorn has accelerated the development of their artificial intelligence classifiers, which are working to automate the detection of CSAM. Through this project, Thorn aimed to create a global standard for labelling, connecting

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World Health Organization

Our grantees World Health Organization What Works to Prevent and Respond to Child Online Abuse Countries involved:Switzerland The World Health Organisation is using the Fund to explore current systems of prevention and response to online child sexual exploitation and abuse. These findings will support governments and civil society organisations, giving them the

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5rights Foundation

Our grantees 5rights Foundation Creation of a Global Child Online Protection Policy Handbook Countries involved:October 2017 – October 2019 5Rights Foundation is creating a Global Policy Handbook that outlines the steps needed to develop the cultural, technical and legal conditions to ensure the protection of children online. Specifically, the Handbook will

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Our purpose in detail

We are here to ensure every child and young person grows in to the digital world feeling safe, and is protected from harm.

We support, champion, and invest in innovative partners from the public, private, and third sectors working towards the same objective.

We believe in equipping guardians and young people with the skills to understand and see danger themselves once accessing digital experiences without supervision.

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