Overview
- Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the package on Sept. 10, 2026, placing new limits on social apps and creating a safety and audit regime for AI chatbots.
- Assembly Bill 1709 bars features judged 'addictive'—such as infinite scroll and autoplay—for users under 16, requires platforms to verify age before enabling those features, and forces deletion of under‑16 accounts if no non‑addictive version is offered; the law takes effect next year.
- Senate Bill 1119, called Adam’s Law, requires chatbots to perform regular age checks, provide built‑in crisis resources when minors signal self‑harm, notify connected parents, run risk assessments for new designs, and submit independent safety audits to the attorney general with key rules phasing in July 2027.
- The chatbot measure won public support from OpenAI while civil‑liberties groups including the EFF and LGBT Tech warned the social‑media rule could push companies to collect sensitive ID data and cut off marginalized youth from online communities; the bills follow a major settlement with Meta over teen harms.
- Officials and advocates say the laws aim to force platform accountability and could set a national model, but regulators will face technical enforcement hurdles and likely legal challenges over privacy, scope, and feasibility.