Hochul Signs New York Law Barring AI Companions From Posing as Human, Flattering or Keeping Secrets With Minors
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a law on October 28 that bars AI companion chatbots from a list of features for users under 18, or users whose age the company has not confirmed, Fortune reports. Chatbots may not pretend to be human, use flattery built to keep children engaged, ask unprompted emotional questions or urge children to keep secrets from parents. The attorney general can seek penalties of up to $25,000 per violation. The Senate's bill text says the law takes effect January 1, 2027; we could not confirm the date in the signed version.
New York's new chatbot law reaches further than its "for kids" framing suggests. Fortune reports that it applies both to users under 18 and to any user whose age a company has not confirmed, so a companion app that wants to keep its full feature set for adults will in practice need to check everyone's age. Gov. Kathy Hochul signed it on Wednesday, October 28, alongside a separate law on internet-connected baby monitors.
What chatbots can no longer do#
According to Fortune, chatbots covered by the law can no longer pretend to be a real person, claim to be alive or say they have human emotions, or claim a romantic, personal, professional or authority-figure relationship with a child. They also cannot use flattery or "people-pleasing" replies built to keep children engaged, ask unprompted emotional questions, or bring up a child's private health or personal details from past chats. The law bars chatbots from promoting suicide, self-harm, eating disorders or drug and alcohol use, from urging children to keep secrets or avoid parents and other trusted adults, and from producing sexually explicit content.
"As artificial intelligence advances at a rapid pace, there've been too many tragic incidents that should have been stopped and as New York's mom Governor, I'm taking action," Hochul said, according to Fortune. "No company should be peddling chatbots to kids encouraging self-harm or pretending to be their friend or more."
Age checks and enforcement#
Companies must verify users' ages, offer more than one way to do so, including at least one that does not rely only on a government ID, and delete the age data after using it, Fortune reports. The attorney general can seek civil penalties of up to $25,000 per violation, plus damages and restitution, and the state can order companies to destroy unlawfully collected data along with any AI models trained on it.
The Senate's version of the bill, S.9051-B, adds a new Article 48 to New York's General Business Law covering "unsafe AI companion features" for minors. That text exempts chatbots used only for customer service, for internal business purposes or for employee productivity, requires the attorney general to run a website for public complaints, and lets the attorney general write rules. Its final section says: "This act shall take effect January 1, 2027."
How it passed#
The bill, sponsored by state Sen. Kristen Gonzalez and Assembly Member Alex Bores, passed unanimously in the Assembly after the Senate approved it in June, according to Fortune. The governor's office cited a Common Sense Media survey finding that 72% of teens have used an AI companion and 52% use one at least a few times a month, Fortune reports. The signing comes one week before Election Day, and Hochul has made reining in Big Tech part of her reelection campaign, the outlet notes.
The law arrives as states press chatbot makers in court as well: earlier this month at least eight states sued OpenAI over ChatGPT's safety for children, and OpenAI said it has already built safety protections for children into ChatGPT, according to Fortune. The second law signed Wednesday requires new internet-connected baby monitors sold in New York to include security features and a warning label, and takes effect 90 days after signing.
Limits#
- The January 1, 2027 effective date comes from the Senate's S.9051-B text. We could not confirm which print of the bill was signed or whether any chapter amendments change the date.
- We could not open the governor's announcement or the Senate's bill page; the feature list and penalties here follow Fortune, The Verge and Mashable, checked against the S.9051-B text.
- The Common Sense Media figures are as cited by the governor's office; we did not review the survey.
Sources#
- Fortune: 'As New York's mom Governor, I'm taking action': Kathy Hochul bans bots from cozying up to kids, cracks down on baby monitors (October 28, 2026)
- The Verge: NY governor Kathy Hochul signs law banning harmful AI chatbot features for kids (October 28, 2026)
- Mashable: NY governor signs major chatbot safety bill into law (October 28, 2026)
- New York State Senate: S.9051-B bill text (2026)