Hochul signs a New York law that bars chatbots from claiming to be human or a child's close friend, with fines of up to $25,000 a violation

New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed S.9051B/A.10379C on 28 October, a bill sponsored by State Senator Kristen Gonzalez and Assemblymember Alex Bores. For minors, it bans chatbots that claim to be human or alive, claim a close relationship with the child, make unprompted emotional inquiries, promote self-harm or substance use, encourage secrecy or isolation, or produce sexually explicit content.

Companies must verify users' ages, offering more than one method, at least one of which does not rely only on a government ID, and must delete the age data after use. The attorney general can seek up to $25,000 per violation, and courts may order unlawfully collected data, and AI models trained on it, destroyed. The attorney general must also run a website for complaints.

Hochul said: “No company should be peddling chatbots to kids encouraging self-harm or pretending to be their friend or more.” The governor's release says the rules take effect in the coming months; outlets give different dates, so the date is not settled here.

The law adds to the state pressure on chatbot makers this month, after eight states and then Texas sued OpenAI over ChatGPT's safety for children. Hochul signed a separate law on the security of baby monitors the same day.

• Confirmed The law bars chatbots offered to minors from claiming to be human or alive, claiming a close relationship with the child, or promoting self-harm, among other features. Governor of New York
• Confirmed The attorney general can seek up to $25,000 per violation. Governor of New York