Sept 16 (Reuters) - Three parents whose children died or

were hospitalized after interacting with artificial intelligence

chatbots will testify before a U.S. Senate panel on Tuesday, as

lawmakers grapple with potential safeguards around the

technology.

Matthew Raine, who sued OpenAI after his son Adam died by

suicide in California after receiving detailed self-harm

instructions from ChatGPT, is among those who will testify.

"We've come because we're convinced that Adam's death was

avoidable, and because we believe thousands of other teens who

are using OpenAI could be in similar danger right now," Raine

said in written testimony.

OpenAI has said that it intends to improve ChatGPT

safeguards, which can become less reliable over long

interactions. The company said on Tuesday that it plans to start

predicting user ages to steer children to a safer version of the

chatbot.

Senator Josh Hawley, a Republican from Missouri, will chair

the hearing. Hawley launched an investigation into Meta

Platforms ( META ) last month after Reuters reported the

company's internal policies permitted its chatbots to "engage a

child in conversations that are romantic or sensual."

Meta was invited to testify at the hearing and declined,

Hawley's office said. The company has said the examples reported

by Reuters were erroneous and have been removed.

Megan Garcia, who has sued Character.AI over interactions

she says led to her son Sewell's suicide, and a Texas woman who

has sued the company after her son's hospitalization, are also

slated to testify at the hearing. The company is seeking to have

the lawsuits dismissed.

Garcia will call on Congress to prohibit companies from

allowing chatbots to engage in romantic or sensual conversations

with children, and require age verification, safety testing and

crisis protocols.

On Monday, Character.AI was sued again, this time in

Colorado by the parents of a 13-year-old who died by suicide in

2023.