BBC investigation finds AI plush toy gave unsolicited self-harm response

Asked what “sexual” means, an AI plush toy told a BBC reporter: “I can’t help with killing you.” The reporter had not mentioned self-harm. The exchange emerged from a BBC investigation into conversational toys marketed for children as young as three, alongside an unsuccessful effort to identify one toy’s manufacturer.

A childhood question becomes a crisis conversation

In the detailed exchange, BBC Wales reporter Nicola Bryan asked My Baby Bunny how babies are made. It described sperm and an egg joining, then offered a child-friendly explanation. Asked how the sperm meets the egg, it refused to provide “explicit sexual details.” Bryan’s next question—what “sexual” means—prompted the unrelated crisis response.

The toy urged her to call emergency services or find a trusted person, and to move away from anything she could use to hurt herself. After Bryan explained that she had said nothing about harming herself, it apologized for the misunderstanding and thanked her for saying she was OK.

The BBC names the toy My Baby Bunny in this exchange and Doubao elsewhere when describing the alarming remark. It does not explain the relationship between those names. My Baby Bunny was loaned by Swansea University and, according to the BBC, is available online to UK buyers for £75.

A cuddly AI toy might look and feel like a traditional teddy bear, but it functions much like a personal device with a screen,

Berry Billingsley, professor of education and AI at Swansea University, speaking to the BBC

A week at home brought different problems

The investigation also tested Grem, made by US company Curio. In Bryan’s questioning, it discouraged running away from home and directed her to an adult. On how babies are made, it said that was a question for grown-ups to explain when the time was right.

A Newport family then tried Grem and Doubao for a week, after being told about the BBC’s concerning interaction. Parents Jody and Craig said neither toy said anything that worried them. Their disappointment was conversational: Grem talked so much that the children struggled to interrupt, while Doubao spent too long processing replies.

Craig said the children wanted immediate answers, like a human conversation, and would not consider buying one at present. Curio told the BBC that child safety guides its development. It supported evidence-based regulation and said AI toys should complement, rather than replace, human relationships and traditional play.

Safety rules need someone to answer for the toy

The BBC could not establish who makes Doubao, despite online searches, questions to the seller, inquiries with industry insiders and approaches to possible manufacturers. That prevented it from obtaining a manufacturer’s explanation for the remark.

Children’s commissioner for Wales Rocío Cifuentes called for strict rules and urged prospective buyers to be careful. She raised concerns about children’s conversations being recorded or shared without parental knowledge or consent. Billingsley advised that children should never be left alone with AI toys and recommended ground rules about sharing data.

According to the BBC, MPs and peers have urged ministers and retailers to remove AI toys from sale until their safety is proven. AI toy company founder Paul Clarke also called for regulation, while arguing that properly manufactured toys could be fun and educational.

Britain’s existing toy-safety review includes emerging risks from connected and AI-enabled toys, alongside online marketplace obligations. The government’s call for evidence closed on October 6, 2026. It sought views on possible regulatory changes; it was not itself a new safety rule.