AI Adoption Case Study: Learn how Yubo pioneered 100% user age estimation to drive safety and trust among Gen Z
techUK’s AI adoption collection of case studies showcases examples of how organisations are Putting AI into Action, either through the adoption of AI models within their organisations, or by developing AI tools that can be leveraged by others.
By shining a light on these use cases, techUK hopes to demonstrate examples of best practice from across sectors and from organisations of all sizes.
1. Challenge:
User safety is a cornerstone of Yubo. Driven by a safety-by-design philosophy, the app has a notable track record of rolling out innovative features and policies proactively to mitigate risks and enhance the user experience. One of Yubo’s innovative safety tools is age gating, which separates users into different communities based on age. To make age gating more accurate and effective, Yubo started to use Yoti’s facial age estimation technology in 2022. By year-end, facial age estimation requirements were established platformwide, making Yubo the first social app in the world to age-verify 100% of its users.
2. Solution:
Yoti’s facial age estimation is a simple and privacy-preserving solution that has helped Yubo process over 290 million age checks to date.
Age verification on Yubo involves the following steps:
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Users are asked to provide their date of birth at sign up. (If logging into Yubo for the first time since age verification requirements were established, returning users are also required to follow this process.)
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The user is prompted to take a “live image” of their face in-app.
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Yoti’s facial age estimation technology compares the image to the birthdate entered.
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Within seconds, results are generated and successful age matches gain instant access to Yubo. In cases of inconclusive results, additional steps are outlined to complete the age verification process.
About 87% of people are able to successfully verify their age on Yubo at first attempt. Inconclusive results are corrected in about 30% of cases by asking users to correct the date of birth they have entered. Users can provide ID and a new live image for review by a Yubo Safety Specialist as an alternative method for completing age verification to gain access to the app.
Because of the high accuracy of Yoti’s facial age estimation across age groups, including whether someone is under or over 13, Yubo is effectively enforcing age gates to group users based on age, to enhance their experiences on the app.
3. Impact:
Age assurance – an umbrella term that refers to methods for verifying that people are representing their ages accurately online – is considered a critical factor for enhancing safety across the internet. By age-verifying their users, platforms can prevent minors from being exposed to explicit content or from coming into contact with predatory adults.
Elected officials and regulators worldwide are increasingly pushing for the adoption of age assurance to address online safety concerns. In November 2024, Australia’s House of Representatives passed a bill prohibiting children under 16 from using social media, mirroring legislation being enacted or considered in the U.S. across states like California, Utah, Tennessee, Texas, and Ohio. The Online Safety Act enacted in the United Kingdom in 2023 also includes provision on age verification.
Of more than 10,000 Yubo users surveyed in October 2024, over 79% said they feel more safe on Yubo compared to other social platforms because of the app’s age verification requirements. Yet age verification has benefits for users of all ages. For adults, it enhances their online experience by establishing trust. They can engage with other users confidently, knowing they are interacting with peers. (A third of children have inflated their date of birth to be registered as 18+ when accessing social media platforms, according to statistics from Ofcom.)
In Yubo’s recent survey, more than 60% said age estimation has had a positive impact on their overall user experience on the app. Over 53% also said that age estimation increases their trust that the users they interact with on Yubo are real people.
Platformwide age verification also builds user trust by posing an obstacle to bots and fake accounts; by requiring live images, Yubo ensures that every active account on the app belongs to a real person. Bots have been found to spread misinformation to manipulate public opinion on key issues, drive social polarization, and facilitate financial scams, among other harms spreading across the internet.
In an October survey of over 1,000 users who have been active on Yubo since 2022 or earlier, almost 50% said they have noticed a reduction in bot accounts on the app since age estimation was rolled out.
In addition to mitigating safety risks, Yoti facial age estimation also plays a role in driving engagement on Yubo by enhancing the effectiveness of the app’s age gates.
Roughly 70% of Yubo users today are aged 18 and over, and by giving young adults the confidence that Yubo will group them among peers in livestreaming rooms and across profile swipes, age verification has also boosted user engagement and retention.
Among users who have been active on Yubo before 2022, almost a third said in a recent survey of over 1,200 users that age verification has noticeably improved the quality of their interactions on the platform.
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Contact the team
Usman Ikhlaq
Usman Ikhlaq
Usman joined techUK in January 2024 as Programme Manager for Artificial Intelligence.
His role is to help techUK members of all sizes and across all sectors to adopt AI at scale. This includes identifying the barriers to adoption, considering solutions and how best to maximise AI's potential.
Prior to joining techUK, Usman worked as a policy, government affairs and public affairs professional in the advertising sector. He has also worked in sales and marketing and FinTech.
Usman is a graduate of the London School of Economics and Political Science (MSc), BPP Law School (GDL and LLB) and Queen Mary University of London (BA).
When he isn’t working, Usman enjoys spending time with his family and friends. He also has a keen interest in running, reading and travelling.
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