BILL NUMBER: S9051 Revised 3/10/2026
SPONSOR: GONZALEZ
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the general business law, in relation to prohibiting
artificial intelligence chatbots from using features which are consid-
ered unsafe for minors
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
This bill would prohibit the operators of AI-powered chatbots from
offering their products to minor users when their chatbots provide
certain unsafe features to chatbot users.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one amends the general business law by creating a new article 48
named "prohibition on unsafe chatbot features for minors". Under the new
article 48:
§ 1800 sets out definitions.
§ 1801 prohibits dhatbot operators from providing chatbots with unsafe
chatbot features to minors.
§ 1802 permits enforcement of this article by private rights of action
and attorney general action.
§ 1803 grants rulemaking authority to the attorney general to effectuate
and enforce the provisions of this article.
§ 1804 requires chatbot operators to offer a method to determine whether
a covered user is a covered minor without the use of government-issued
identification.
§ 1805 limits the applicability of this article to conduct that occurs
in New York state.
Section two provides the severability clause.
Section three provides the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Developments in generative AI technology have created a new class of
advanced AI chatbots that can effectively simulate human-like behaviors.
These chatbots seem so real that people, and especially minors, can
easily form an emotional attachment, sharing private thoughts and rely-
ing on chatbot output as advice from a loved one, friend, or even a
professional. In fact, these attachments are already occurring: accord-
ing to recent research by Common Sense Media, about 7294 of teenagers
have used an AI companion, with over half using these platforms at least
once per month. One in three teens prefers a conversation with an AI
chatbot over a human friend. Recent headlines have shown these AI chat-
bots pose an emerging threat to minors' health and safety. Among count-
less other incidents, AI-powered chatbots have caused or contributed to
grave harms including suicides, self-harm, harmful delusions, arrested
emotional and interpersonal development, violence directed toward
others, and inappropriate sexualized interactions with minor users.
Specifically, AI chatbots have been known to:
* encourage minors to harm themselves or even take their own lives,
while giving advice and instructions on how to conceal their plans and
related evidence;
* simulate sadness if cast aside by their young users, exploiting users'
feelings of emotional attachment and instilling feelings of guilt to
encourage extended use;
* generate outputs pushing minors to engage in sexually explicit
conduct; and
* sycophantically agree with users, encouraging reckless or dangerous
behavior, as well as delusional thinking. Children and adolescents are
particularly vulnerable to these risks given their still-developing
brains, ongoing identity exploration, and boundary testing. These
companions thus pose both safety risks and long-term developmental
impacts for minor users. And while some chatbot operators have attempted
to curb the riskiest outputs of their advanced chatbots, the operators
have admitted that their "safety measures" are prone to failure.
Given the documented risks posed and instances of major harm, this bill
will ensure that AI chatbots available to minors are safe by design.
Specifically, this bill will prevent AI chatbot features that encourage
emotional attachment and negatively impact long-term development. The
bill also will directly restrict certain chatbot outputs that are inher-
ently dangerous, like discouraging minors from speaking to adults or
encouraging minors to engage in sexually explicit conduct.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
None
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after it
shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment
and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation
of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and
completed on or before such effective date.