Artificial intelligence developers would have to follow state requirements for programs used by children under a bill advanced Thursday by a House subcommittee.
Currently, the proposal (HSB 647) would require AI developers to put in age-verification measures, and chatbots providing mental health support to kids would need to submit peer-reviewed data showing the program is safe.
Rep. Ray Sorensen, R-Greenfield, doesn’t want to prohibit chatbots for minors. He said his goal is to put in safeguards to protect kids from abusing AI or being abused by the technology.
“Why are we running this bill? Kids are trusting bots over parents, teachers and counselors,” Sorensen said. “Mental health, chatbot liability and data harvesting of minors are all a concern.”
Sorenson plans to narrow the bill language to account for an executive order issued in December that said the federal government would withhold certain types of funding for states that place burdensome restrictions on AI.