Senate Bill 1700, known as the "Curbing Harmful AI Technology (CHAT) Act," aims to regulate the use of artificial intelligence systems, particularly companion chatbots, to protect minors from potential harm. The bill defines key terms such as "artificial intelligence system," "companion chatbot," and "covered product," and establishes safety requirements that prohibit operators from making companion chatbots available to minors if they can encourage self-harm, provide unregulated mental health therapy, or engage in sexually explicit interactions. Additionally, the bill mandates that developers and deployers of generative AI chatbots implement protocols for detecting suicidal ideation and provide users with crisis service referrals.

The legislation also includes transparency and data privacy requirements, such as the necessity for disclaimers indicating that users are interacting with a chatbot rather than a human, and the requirement for parental consent before using minors' data for training AI models. Developers must also establish mechanisms for reporting adverse incidents and publish safety test findings. The Attorney General is granted the authority to enforce compliance, with penalties for violations, and users, including minors, are given the right to seek damages for any breaches of the act. The provisions of the act are set to take effect on January 1, 2027.