Senators announce bill that would ban AI chatbot companions for minors

Bipartisan legislation announced Tuesday that aims to crack down on tech companies that make artificial intelligence chatbots available to minors.

Sens. Josh Hawley, Missouri Republican, and Richard Blumenthal, Connecticut Democrat, said at a news conference their legislation would require AI companies to implement an age-verification process, ban companies from providing AI companions to minors and require AI companions to disclose their nonhuman status and lack of professional credentials.

“The legislation that we are introducing today is very simple,” Mr. Hawley said. “It just says this: No AI chatbot companion should be targeted at children who are younger than 18 years of age.”

Sens. Katie Britt, Alabama Republican, Mark R. Warner, Virginia Democrat, and Chris Murphy, Connecticut Democrat, are co-sponsoring the bill.

The proposal follows a September congressional hearing where several parents testified about their kids using AI chatbots — saying some of the usage has pushed children into sexual conversations and has resulted in suicide — and called for more safeguards.

“The partnership that has produced this legislation is one piece of what we think is necessary to prevent some of the access and abuses that flow from AI,” Mr. Blumenthal said at the press conference.

The event included parents who delivered emotional speeches about their children’s use of AI chatbots.

ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Meta AI, Character.AI and xAI’s Grok all allow kids above the age of 13 to use their services.

The new legislation is likely to face pushback as privacy advocates and tech companies argue that their online services are protected speech under the First Amendment.

“Big Tech knows what it’s doing,” Mr. Blumenthal said. “It doesn’t need this press conference to see the harm that it’s causing and the care that it should be providing.”

In August, Mr. Hawley wrote a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg kick-starting an investigation into Meta’s AI policies. This followed a Reuters report on an internal Meta policy document on chatbot rules that permitted provocative behavior. 

Meta, which owns Instagram and Facebook, removed the policy and announced new parental controls.

Not long after, OpenAI said in an August statement that it was working to make ChatGPT more supportive in moments of crisis. In September, it announced new parental controls and an “age-prediction system” to provide a different version of ChatGPT for teenagers.

Mr. Hawley said Congress hasn’t acted on this issue because of the power of the tech companies. 

“There ought to be a sign outside of the Senate chamber that says, ‘Bought and paid for by Big Tech,’” he said. “Because the truth is, almost nothing they object to crosses that Senate floor.”

He urged his colleagues to join him and Mr. Blumenthal on this bill: “Put your money where your mouth is.”