New York Bans Minors from Using AI Companion Chatbots

New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed a new law Wednesday preventing minors from using AI chatbots that act as companions, in one of the broadest moves yet to restrict consumer-facing models.

Key points

• Meta Launches New AI App That Lets You Raise a Virtual Pet.
• While other states, including California, have passed chatbot restrictions, the New York law imposes some of the broadest language regulating the technology, drawing backlash from AI firms.
• AI giants OpenAI and Anthropic did not respond to requests for comment on the law.
• They additionally cannot generate outputs suggesting the chatbot holds a "personal relationship, professional relationship, or an authority figure role, " nor frame its content as a "personal opinion."
• "No longer will minors have access to chatbots that pretend to be their friends, boyfriends and girlfriends, " Hochul remarked at the signing ceremony.

For context, the law requires chatbot operators such as OpenAI's ChatGPT to verify user ages and restrict certain behaviours by the AI interface when the user is under 18.

Under the law, chatbots applied by minors cannot produce content that leads users to believe the AI "is human, alive, or experiences human emotions." Hackers Could Hijack Servers Before Windows or Linux Even Starts.

"No longer will minors have access to chatbots that pretend to be their friends, boyfriends and girlfriends, " Hochul remarked at the signing ceremony. "No longer will chatbots be able to keep sensitive information about a minor's emotional and physical health."

Tech: NYC, a tech industry advocacy group, criticized the law's "vague language, " arguing that keeping kids safe online "should not mean cutting them off from tools that help them learn and prepare for careers."

Common Sense Media, a nonprofit media-safety advocacy group, hailed the bill as "the strongest kids' AI safety bill in the country." CEO Jim Steyer remarked AI businesses offer chatbots with features that are "dangerous, and even deadly, for kids and teens, " adding that those harmful features "will be outlawed in New York." Stay Connected with ProPakistani.

Obtain the latest tech news, telecom insights, and product launches wherever you prefer. Follow on Google Discover. Follow on Google News Join WhatsApp. See more ProPakistani stories in Google Search and Top Stories.

In short, new York Bans Minors from Using AI Companion Chatbots is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.