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Roblox Releases AI-Powered Facial Age Estimation

Photo from Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

On Nov. 18, 2025, Roblox released a voluntary facial age estimation feature as one of two options to determine users’ age. In January of 2026, users will be required to verify their age either by submitting a picture of themselves or a government-issued ID. Due to Roblox previously being heavily dependent on users’ self-declared age, these changes are problematic for many users, mainly restricting chat abilities. 

Roblox was pressured to make these changes due to receiving various concerns and lawsuits centered around users’ safety. Most of these lawsuits are due to minors being sexually exploited or physically assaulted from the platform. States such as Florida, Texas, Kentucky and Louisiana have also issued lawsuits or investigations on the company, further pressuring these changes on the platform. 

The facial age estimation feature is powered by AI, and categorizes users by their estimated age. These age groups are under nine, 9-12, 13-15, 16-17, 18-20 and 21 and over. Users under nine are not allowed to use chat features at all, whereas other ages are limited to their age group or similar age groups. This age estimation is not entirely accurate, and Roblox developers are aware of this flaw. It was said that the AI used for this estimation is off by about 1.4 years for minors; however, many users have reported that it is inaccurate and can easily be faked. 

“People can just get their parents to do it,” sophomore Andrew Nordby said. “So it’s not really doing anything.”

Roblox is one of few platforms that allows young players, with 40% of its 84 million users under the age of 13. Notably, with the large number of child users, many players do not have IDs and are going to be reliant on the facial age estimation. With this in mind, many users will face issues with inaccurate age profiling and restrictions that should not apply to them.

Additionally, controversy has spread about this feature and the further safety concerns it causes. Critics are pointing out the uncomfortability of submitting minor’s face scans to a platform already deeply associated with allegations of grooming and sexual exploitation. Other criticisms highlight predators' ability to easily fake their age and maintain access with minors. 

“I think it could be good, but you’d have to train it a lot,” Nordby said. “I think there’s better ways to do it, like you could do IDs or get your parents to verify it.”