Aug 15 (Reuters) - U.S. Senator Josh Hawley launched a

probe into Facebook parent Meta Platforms' ( META ) artificial

intelligence policies on Friday, demanding documents on rules

that had allowed its artificial intelligence chatbots to "engage

a child in conversations that are romantic or sensual."

Both Democrats and Republicans in Congress have expressed alarm

over the rules outlined in an internal Meta document first

reported by Reuters on Thursday.

Hawley, a Republican from Missouri, chairs the Senate

subcommittee on crime and counterterrorism, which will

investigate "whether Meta's generative-AI products enable

exploitation, deception, or other criminal harms to children,

and whether Meta misled the public or regulators about its

safeguards," he said in a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

"We intend to learn who approved these policies, how long

they were in effect, and what Meta has done to stop this conduct

going forward," Hawley said.

Meta declined to comment on Hawley's letter on Friday. The

company said previously that "the examples and notes in question

were and are erroneous and inconsistent with our policies, and

have been removed."

In addition to documents outlining those changes and who

authorized them, Hawley sought earlier drafts of the policies

along with internal risk reports, including on minors and

in-person meetups. Reuters reported on Thursday about a retired

man who died while traveling to New York on the invitation of a

Meta chatbot.

Meta must also disclose what it has told regulators about

its generative AI protections for young users or limits on

medical advice, according to Hawley's letter.

Hawley has often criticized Big Tech. He held a hearing in April

on Meta's alleged attempts to gain access to the Chinese market

which were referenced in a book by former Facebook executive

Sarah Wynn-Williams.