Newsom vetoes AI chatbot restrictions for kids, signs bill adding guardrails

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) vetoed a bill Monday that would have restricted children’s access to artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots while signing another that places guardrails on how chatbots interact with kids and handle issues of suicide and self-harm. 

Newsom declined to approve A.B. 1064, which would have barred chatbot developers from making their products available to children unless they could ensure the chatbots would not engage in discussions about self-harm, suicide, disordered eating and other topics with kids. 

“While I strongly support the author’s goal of establishing necessary safeguards for the safe use of AI by minors, AB 1064 imposes such broad restrictions on the use of conversational AI tools that it may unintentionally lead to a total ban on the use of these products by minors,” the governor wrote in a message to state lawmakers. 

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