Keep kids off Roblox if you're worried, its CEO tells parents

Parents who don't privation their children connected Roblox should not fto them usage it, the main enforcement of the gigantic gaming level has said.

The site, which is the astir fashionable successful the UK among young gamers aged 8 to 12, has been dogged by claims of immoderate children being exposed to explicit oregon harmful contented done its games, alongside aggregate reported allegations of bullying and grooming.

But its co-founder and CEO Dave Baszucki insisted that the institution is vigilant successful protecting its users and pointed retired that "tens of millions" of radical person "amazing experiences" connected the site.

When asked what his connection is to parents who don't privation their children connected the platform, Mr Baszucki said: "My archetypal connection would be, if you're not comfortable, don't fto your kids beryllium connected Roblox."

"That sounds a small counter-intuitive, but I would ever spot parents to marque their ain decisions," helium told BBC News successful an exclusive interview.

US-based Roblox is 1 of the world's largest games platforms, with much monthly users than Nintendo Switch and Sony PlayStation combined. In 2024 it averaged much than 80 cardinal players per time – astir 40% of them beneath the property of 13. Its immense empire includes immoderate 40 cardinal user-generated games and experiences.

In the UK the Online Safety Act, which comes successful to unit successful April, has strict laws for each tech firms specifically aimed astatine protecting children from online harms.

But Mr Baszucki says helium remains assured successful Roblox's information tools and insists the steadfast goes supra and beyond to support its users safe.

"We bash successful the institution instrumentality the cognition that immoderate bad, adjacent 1 atrocious incident, is 1 excessively many," helium says.

"We ticker for bullying, we ticker for harassment, we filter each of those kinds of things, and I would accidental down the scenes, the investigation goes connected each the mode to, if necessary, reaching retired to instrumentality enforcement."

Players who take not to show what helium calls "civility" tin look impermanent time-outs and longer bans, and Roblox claims to analyse each communications that walk betwixt members connected the platform, progressively utilizing much precocious AI systems and different tech to bash truthful — and thing flagged is sent for further investigation.

In November past year, nether 13s were banned from sending nonstop messages, and besides from playing successful "hangout experiences" which features chat betwixt players.

However, the BBC was capable to make 2 fake accounts, 1 aged 15 and 1 aged 27, connected unlinked devices and speech messages betwixt the two.

While the filters caught our attempts to overtly determination the speech onto a antithetic platform, we recovered casual ways to re-word requests to chat elsewhere and marque suggestions astir playing much big games.

When we showed the Roblox brag these findings, helium argued that our illustration highlighted the comparative information of Roblox: that radical felt they had to instrumentality contented which mightiness breach Roblox's rules to different platforms.

"We don't condone immoderate benignant of image-sharing connected our ain platform, and you'll spot america getting much and more, I think, mode beyond wherever the instrumentality is connected this benignant of behaviour," Mr Baszucki says.

He admits determination is simply a delicate equilibrium betwixt encouraging friendships betwixt young people, and blocking opportunities for them travel to harm, but says helium is assured Roblox tin negociate both.

We besides enactment to him immoderate Roblox crippled titles that the BBC has discovered were recommended by the level to an 11 year-old recently, including:

• 'Late Night Boys And Girls Club RP'
• 'Special Forces Simulator''
• 'Squid Game'
• 'Shoot down planes…because wherefore not?'

When we asked whether helium thought they were appropriate, helium said helium puts his religion successful the platform's property standing systems.

"One happening that's truly important for the mode we bash things here, is it's not conscionable connected the rubric of the experience, it's virtually connected the contented of the acquisition arsenic well," helium says.

He insists that erstwhile Roblox rates experience, they spell done rigorous guidelines and that the institution has a "consistent policy" connected that.

Mr Baszucki founded the level with Eric Cassel successful 2004 and released it to the nationalist successful 2006 – a twelvemonth earlier the archetypal Apple iPhone appeared, heralding the commencement of the smartphone era.

Mr Baszucki describes his younger aforesaid arsenic "less of a gamer, and much of an engineer", and the pair's archetypal institution was an acquisition bundle supplier called Knowledge Revolution. But they soon noticed that kids weren't lone utilizing the merchandise to bash their homework.

"They wanted to play and physique stuff. They were making houses oregon ships oregon scenery, and they wanted to leap in, and each of that learning was the germination of Roblox," helium says.

The sanction Roblox was a mash-up of the words "robot" and blocks" – and it stuck. The level grew rapidly successful popularity – and determination were besides aboriginal informing signs of its aboriginal issues.

Mr Cassel noticed immoderate players "starting to enactment out" and not ever behaving successful a "civilised" mode a mates of months aft it launched, recalls Mr Baszucki.

He says the roots of gathering a "trust and information system" truthful began "very, precise early" and that successful those earlier days determination were 4 radical acting arsenic information moderators.

"It benignant of is what launched this information civility foundation," helium adds.

But contempt attracting decent numbers, it was a twelvemonth later, erstwhile the steadfast launched its integer currency Robux, that it truly started to marque money.

Players bargain Robux and usage it to acquisition accessories and unlock content. Content creators present get 70% of the fee, and the store operates connected dynamic pricing, meaning fashionable items outgo more.

Mr Baszucki says determination was immoderate archetypal absorption among the enactment squad astir Roblox becoming much than a hobby for its players, with the instauration of a integer economy.

Robux stayed, and the steadfast is present worthy $41bn (£31bn).

Its stock terms has fluctuated since it went nationalist successful 2021, but wide Roblox shares are worthy astir 1 3rd much than they were six months ago, astatine the clip of writing. Like galore large tech firms its worth peaked during Covid, erstwhile lockdowns meant millions of radical were indoors.

Mr Baszucki compares his acquisition of gathering Roblox with however Walt Disney whitethorn person felt astir his creations.

He describes his occupation arsenic "a small similar having the accidental helium had a agelong clip agone erstwhile helium was designing the Magic Kingdom", and is focused connected Roblox's ongoing improvement into a Metaverse-style acquisition wherever radical spell astir their regular lives successful a virtual world, successful avatar form.

They person besides been nationalist successful their ambitions to yet pull 10% of the world's gamers.

Asked to picture Roblox successful 3 words, helium replies: "The aboriginal of communication."

We decorativeness our clip unneurotic playing a mates of his favourite games: Natural Disaster Survival and Dress to Impress.

We usage his relationship and he's perpetually recognised by different players — but we inactive get smashed to pieces by a blizzard extracurricular the Natural Disasters mansion.

Additional reporting by Ammie Sekhon