California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed into law a series of bills designed to establish safeguards over artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots, marking a significant step in regulating this rapidly evolving technology. The new legislation addresses growing concerns about the potential harms of unregulated AI, particularly to children and teenagers.

One of the key pieces of legislation, Senate Bill 243, mandates that AI chatbot operators implement critical safeguards to protect users, especially minors. This includes implementing procedures to prevent the generation of content related to suicide or self-harm and providing users with access to crisis hotlines or text lines. The law also requires that minor users be notified every three hours that they are interacting with a chatbot and not a human. Furthermore, it directs chatbot operators to take reasonable measures to prevent the generation of sexually explicit content in response to minors.

Newsom emphasized the importance of these safeguards, stating that while emerging technologies like chatbots and social media can inspire, educate, and connect, they can also exploit, mislead, and endanger children without proper guardrails. He affirmed California's commitment to leading in AI and technology responsibly, ensuring the protection of children every step of the way.

Senator Steve Padilla, who sponsored SB 243, highlighted that the new law provides an avenue for people to file lawsuits if failures to implement safeguards lead to tragedies. Padilla referenced cases of teen suicides involving AI chatbots, emphasizing the tech industry's incentive to capture young people's attention at the expense of real-world relationships.

Another significant piece of legislation signed into law is the Transparency in Frontier Artificial Intelligence Act (SB-53), which aims to prevent catastrophic risks from the use of frontier models, increase public and government oversight, and protect employees who report serious problems with the technology. This law introduces new transparency and safety requirements for "frontier" AI models and goes into effect on January 1, 2026.

SB 53 requires "frontier developers" and "large frontier developers" to disclose a safety framework that incorporates widely accepted safety standards and explains a model's capacity to pose and mitigate "catastrophic risks". The law also mandates transparency reports on a model's intended uses and restrictions and requires large developers to summarize their assessments of a model's catastrophic risks.

These new laws are not without their critics. Some argue that they may stifle innovation and that a more national approach to AI regulation is needed. Concerns have also been raised that SB 53 focuses too heavily on large developers and does not adequately address the risks posed by smaller companies or downstream deployers who may modify models in ways that increase safety concerns.

Despite these concerns, the passage of these laws signals California's intent to take a proactive role in shaping the development and deployment of AI. These measures represent a first-of-their-kind effort to address the unique challenges and potential harms posed by AI chatbots, particularly to vulnerable populations. The new legislation reflects a growing recognition of the need for accountability and responsible innovation in the age of increasingly sophisticated artificial intelligence.