OpenAI, the company responsible for ChatGPT, has announced that as of December 2025 it will allow access to erotic content for adult users who verify their age. The move, initiated by CEO Sam Altman, is a major shift in the company's moderation policy.
Altman justified the change by pointing out that, so far, ChatGPT had been “quite restrictive” in order to “make sure we were careful about mental health issues.” However, he acknowledged that this caution made it “less palatable and helpful to many users who did not have mental health issues.” The new approach, he said, seeks to “treat adult users as adults.”.
The decision has generated controversy among specialists in technological ethics, therapists and social networks. Critics warn that, under the argument of freedom of choice, it hides a strategy to monetize loneliness and digital hypersexualization, with potential consequences on mental health and the normalization of addictive behaviors.
Some analysts point out that the new features that could be incorporated - customizable avatars, couple simulations, erotic conversations or custom-generated bodies - could mark a turning point in the expansion of digital pornography. The risk, they argue, is not just ease of access, but the creation of virtual environments that replace human contact and foster affective ties with machines.
The campaign of the Ministry of Equality
In Spain, meanwhile, the Ministry of Equality has launched the campaign “For not talking.”, focused on warning about the consequences of pornography consumption. With messages such as “Porn generates unrealistic expectations.”, “contains high violent content”, “eroticizes violence” o “establishes relationship models based on male domination”.”, The initiative seeks to promote sexual education to counteract the influence of pornographic content on the construction of identity and desire.
The contrast is striking: while the Spanish government is trying to discourage pornography consumption and encourage reflection on its effects, one of the world's most influential technology companies is opening the door to a new form of automated and depersonalized erotic consumption. So far, no government has criticized or announced specific measures to assess the ethical and psychological impact of this decision.
The television paradox
Given the general context, the decision of the Spanish public television to take the decision to bring to its prime time the program The Revolt (formerly called The Resistance). For years, the original program described itself as «porn". friendly«, openly defending pornography and including widely broadcast interviews with Spain's leading porn stars.
The irruption of artificial intelligence in the field of sexuality opens a fundamental debate on the boundaries between individual freedom, technological ethics and public health. In a world where AI is increasingly present, the question remains unavoidable: should we promote pornography, tolerate it or ban it? Is pornography harmless?
