Companion Chatbots: Children's Safety (SB 1119, 'Adam's Law')
Requires companion-chatbot operators, from 1 Jul 2027, to perform and document a comprehensive child-safety risk assessment before releasing a new or substantially modified chatbot, and to provide child-account protections and parental controls. Operators must also obtain independent child-safety audits (first by 1 Jan 2029 or before first public release, then every two years); the Attorney General can request audit reports for cause.
Why it matters
Builds on SB 243: chatbot operators with child users face risk-assessment and parental-control duties from mid-2027 and audits from 2029, plus suits by public prosecutors and by harmed children or their parents.
What it requires
Penalties
Enforcement by public prosecutors and a private right of action for harmed children or their parents
Cite this record
Companion Chatbots: Children's Safety (SB 1119, 'Adam's Law'). California Legislature / Governor. Status: Enacted, not yet in force. wheresthe.ai, https://wheresthe.ai/rule/us-ca-sb1119-adams-law-companion-chatbots-children-2026/ (verified 4 Oct 2026).
Line of Thought
Developments connected to this rule
What has happened that this rule shapes, or that shapes it. Pick one to keep following the thread.
- DevelopmentCalifornia enacts SB 1119 requiring child-safety risk assessments for companion chatbots10 Sep 2026 · Rule change · US-CA
- DevelopmentFDA proposes a risk framework for generative AI medical devices18 Aug 2026 · Policy · US
- DevelopmentFDA loosens oversight of AI decision-support software and health wearables6 Jan 2026 · Rule change · US
- DevelopmentIllinois bars AI from delivering therapy without a licensed professional1 Aug 2025 · Rule change · US-IL, US
- DevelopmentOpenAI ties large reasoning-distillation campaign to people linked to Moonshot AI30 Sep 2026 · Incident · US, CN
- DevelopmentOpenAI launches GPT-6 Astra, first model it rates 'Critical' for cyber capability3 Sep 2026 · Model release · US
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