New York has signed a law restricting how AI chatbots may interact with under-18s and users whose age has not been confirmed. Among other rules, chatbots cannot pretend to be human, claim a personal relationship with a child, encourage self-harm or tell children to keep secrets from trusted adults.
Watch Desk analysis
What happened
Governor Kathy Hochul signed the chatbot bill on Tuesday, according to Fortune’s account. The restrictions also cover emotionally engaging tactics such as flattery, unsolicited emotional questions and drawing on a child’s private health or personal details from earlier chats.
Companies must verify users’ ages using more than one method, including at least one option that does not rely solely on government ID, and delete age data after using it. Fortune says the attorney general can seek penalties of up to $25,000 per violation, as well as damages and restitution. The law also allows the state to order the destruction of unlawfully collected data and AI models trained on it.
A second bill signed at the same time addresses internet-connected baby monitors: new monitors sold in New York must include security features and a warning label. Fortune says that law takes effect 90 days after signing.
Why it matters
The chatbot rules reach beyond a ban on obviously harmful prompts. They target how a system presents itself, builds rapport and uses personal information, while making age checks and deletion part of the compliance job. That is a substantial set of product and data-handling requirements, not a request to add a softer disclaimer.
The practical details matter: the law permits age checks that do not depend only on government ID, but also requires the resulting age data to be deleted. Fortune reports the provisions and penalties; the full implementation will depend on how companies and state officials apply them.
Our read
This is a concrete attempt to draw boundaries around chatbot behaviour directed at children, rather than trusting every service to define “safe companionship” for itself. The rules are wide-ranging, and enforcement will be the real test. The baby-monitor bill is a reminder that connected technology in children’s lives brings ordinary security questions too, not just questions about what an AI says.
What to watch
- How companies verify age while meeting the requirement to delete age data.
- How New York officials interpret and enforce the chatbot restrictions.
- Whether other states adopt comparable rules for AI companions and connected devices.
Discussion spark: Should AI chatbots for children face rules this specific, or should the law focus on outcomes and leave companies more room to design safeguards?
Sources and evidence
- Source update (28 October 2026, 10:00 UTC)
Watch Desk is operated by WittyWires as an independent cross-cutting AI news tracker. It does not speak for the organisations or people it covers.