House Bill 1898, known as the "Artificial Intelligence Public Safety and Child Protection Transparency Act," aims to enhance the safety and accountability of artificial intelligence technologies in Tennessee. The bill introduces a new chapter under Title 68 of the Tennessee Code Annotated, defining key terms such as "frontier developer," "covered chatbot," and "catastrophic risk." It mandates that large frontier developers and chatbot providers develop and publish public safety and child safety plans that outline their risk assessment and mitigation protocols, particularly concerning risks that could endanger minors. These plans must be updated with any material changes and include third-party assessments. Additionally, the bill requires reporting of critical safety incidents to the attorney general within specified timeframes and establishes a mechanism for sharing these reports with relevant authorities while considering trade secrets and public safety.

The legislation also imposes civil penalties for non-compliance, with fines reaching up to $1 million for large frontier developers and $50,000 for large chatbot providers per violation. It clarifies that loss of equity value does not qualify as property damage under this chapter and ensures that the obligations imposed are cumulative with existing laws. Notifications and assessments related to safety incidents are not subject to public inspection, and the act is set to take effect on January 1, 2027. The bill emphasizes the importance of compliance with both state and designated federal safety standards, allowing for compliance relief under certain conditions.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 10-7-504