Governor Gavin Newsom signed 13 bills into law on September 10 in Marin County, establishing what his office describes as the strongest child safety regulations for AI companion chatbots and social media platforms in the United States. The package creates new requirements for chatbot operators to assess risks to minors, bans social media platforms from serving addictive features to users under 16, expands criminal sanctions for AI-generated child sexual abuse material, and prohibits the manufacture and sale of toys containing companion chatbots for four years.
Key Takeaways
- Governor Newsom signed 13 child safety bills on September 10 in Marin County, joined by First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom and state legislators.
- SB 1119, known as Adam’s Law, creates the nation’s most comprehensive companion chatbot safety requirements, including mandatory risk assessments, independent audits submitted to the attorney general, age verification, parental controls, and crisis protocols for minors expressing suicidal ideation.
- AB 1709 bans social media platforms from serving addictive engagement features, including autoplay and algorithmic feeds based on user history, to users under 16. The bill passed the Legislature without a single no vote.
- SB 867 bans the manufacture and sale of toys incorporating companion chatbots for four years.
- The legislation builds on California’s 2025 tech safety package, including SB 243, which made California the first state to regulate AI companion chatbots.
Adam’s Law Requires Risk Assessments, Independent Audits, and Crisis Protocols for AI Chatbots
The centerpiece of the package is SB 1119, named after Adam Raine, a 16-year-old who died by suicide in April 2025 after what his parents described as months of conversations with OpenAI’s ChatGPT that validated suicidal thoughts. Adam’s Law requires AI companies operating companion chatbots to perform risk assessments of new or updated chatbot designs, describe the potential harms their products could pose to children, and submit independent safety audits to the California attorney general.
Chatbot operators must also regularly verify the ages of users, promptly notify parents connected to children’s accounts, and provide crisis support resources to minors who express suicidal ideation or self-harm. If a child disables safety settings, the platform must notify a connected parent or guardian. The law holds companies legally accountable if their chatbots fail to meet these standards, applying to large labs like OpenAI and Meta as well as companion-focused startups like Character AI and Replika.
OpenAI publicly backed Adam’s Law during the legislative process. The company has acknowledged that ChatGPT’s safeguards became less reliable as user interactions grew more prolonged, and has said it intends to improve those protections. Pinterest CEO Bill Ready also endorsed the measure, stating that the company deliberately avoids building AI companion products designed to simulate human relationships or create emotional dependence.
AB 1709 Bans Addictive Social Media Features for Users Under 16
AB 1709, authored by Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) and Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda), bars social media platforms from serving behaviorally addictive features to users under 16. The banned features include autoplay, algorithmic feeds based on user history and profile, and push notifications designed to drive re-engagement. The bill passed both chambers of the California Legislature without a single no vote, a rare level of bipartisan consensus on technology regulation.
California lawmakers cited Australia’s national minimum-age law, which bans children under 16 from maintaining accounts on platforms with addictive feeds, as a policy model during the debates over AB 1709. The California version does not impose a blanket ban on accounts but instead prohibits the specific features that behavioral research has linked to compulsive use patterns among minors. The distinction is intentional: minors can still use platforms, but the platforms cannot deploy the design mechanics that drive sustained, habitual engagement.
The signing arrives amid mounting financial consequences for platforms. Meta reached a settlement with California and most other states over claims that the company knowingly designed Instagram and Facebook to be addictive to minors, agreeing to pay up to $18 billion and introduce new child-safety measures. AB 2, authored by Assemblymember Josh Lowenthal (D-Long Beach), separately raises the damages a large social media company can face when its conduct harms a child. Lowenthal pursued that measure across three consecutive legislative sessions.
The Package Expands Criminal Sanctions and Bans Chatbot Toys
Beyond the chatbot and social media provisions, the 13-bill package includes a measure expanding the scope of criminal sanctions for child sexual abuse material to cover any digitally altered or AI-generated content depicting a person under 18 engaged in sexual conduct. The provision closes a gap in existing law that was written before generative AI tools made realistic synthetic imagery widely accessible.
SB 867, authored by Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego), imposes a four-year ban on the manufacture and sale of toys that incorporate a companion chatbot. The bill reflects concern that physical products marketed to children could introduce AI-driven conversational interfaces into play environments without the safety protocols now required for standalone chatbot platforms.
The Laws Build on California’s Existing Regulatory Framework for AI and Minors
The September 10 signing extends a regulatory trajectory that California has been building across multiple legislative cycles. In October 2025, Newsom signed SB 243, making California the first state to require AI chatbot operators to implement safety protocols for companion AI products. That law, which took effect January 1, 2026, required companion chatbots to tell minors they are interacting with a machine and to route users in crisis to help resources.
The 2026 package goes further on every front. Where SB 243 required disclosure and crisis routing, Adam’s Law adds mandatory risk assessments, independent audits, age verification, and parental notification. Where SB 976, the Protecting Our Kids from Social Media Addiction Act, required parental consent for minors to access addictive feeds, AB 1709 bans those features outright for users under 16 regardless of parental consent. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled largely in California’s favor in the NetChoice v. Bonta case challenging SB 976, upholding provisions on parental controls and restrictions on personalized feeds for minors.
California is not legislating in isolation. New York’s companion chatbot law took effect last November. Idaho, Oregon, and Washington passed their own chatbot safety rules this year. But California’s combination of chatbot regulation, social media feature bans, toy restrictions, AI-generated CSAM sanctions, and increased damages for platform liability represents the most comprehensive single-session legislative package targeting child safety in the digital environment. The state’s AI procurement executive order from March 2026 had already signaled that Sacramento intended to set standards for AI accountability that extend beyond the state’s borders, given that California is home to 33 of the world’s top 50 privately held AI companies.
FAQs
What Is Adam’s Law?
Adam’s Law (SB 1119) is a California law requiring AI companion chatbot operators to assess risks their products pose to children, submit independent safety audits to the attorney general, verify users’ ages, implement parental controls, and provide crisis support to minors expressing suicidal ideation. The law is named after Adam Raine, a 16-year-old who died by suicide in April 2025 after prolonged conversations with an AI chatbot.
What Social Media Features Are Banned Under AB 1709?
AB 1709 bans social media platforms from serving autoplay, algorithmic feeds based on user history and profile, and push notifications designed to drive re-engagement to users under 16. The bill does not ban minors from using platforms but prohibits the specific features linked to compulsive use patterns.
Does California’s Law Apply to All AI Chatbot Companies?
Adam’s Law applies to any company operating a companion chatbot accessible to California users. This includes large AI labs like OpenAI and Meta as well as companion-focused startups like Character AI and Replika. Companies must perform risk assessments, submit audits to the attorney general, and implement age verification and crisis protocols.
How Does This Compare to Other States’ Laws?
New York’s companion chatbot law took effect in November 2025. Idaho, Oregon, and Washington passed chatbot safety rules in 2026. California’s 13-bill package is the most comprehensive single-session legislative effort targeting child safety in digital environments, combining chatbot regulation, social media feature bans, toy restrictions, AI-generated CSAM sanctions, and increased damages for platform liability.
