SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California legislators on Monday sent two bills to Gov. Gavin Newsom that would change how chatbots are made and regulated in the state. The legislation could have ramifications across the country for the still-emerging technology.

Senate Bill 1119 would require companion chatbot operators to analyze the design of their products for any potential harm on children and submit safety audits to the attorney general, who could file lawsuits against companies that violate the measure.

“I think we’re going to be able to say that we have the broadest set of guardrails in the nation,” its author state Sen. Steve Padilla, D-Chula Vista, said after the bill passed.

It was inspired by the 2025 death of Adam Raine, who began using ChatGPT to help with homework but then started to rely on the chatbot for emotional support. He killed himself after discussing suicidal methods with the system, according to a lawsuit filed by his parents. He was 16.

The measure was named Adam’s Law in his honor.

“Powerful Al companionship chatbots were unleashed on our kids with vastly inadequate protections, and every day we hear of harms caused by the use of these powerful products,” his parents Matthew and Maria Raine said in a statement. “Adam‘s Law is a serious and much needed step forward for Al companion chatbot safety in the state of California.”

OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, supported the measure.

Senate Bill 867 would prohibit for four years the sale and manufacturing of toys for children under 16 years old that include a companion chatbot. It was also authored by Padilla, who said the pause was needed to ensure children’s toys are safe.

Lauren Goodman, a leader of the Mothers Against Media Addiction’s Marin County chapter, and mom to a 14-year-old boy, said young people deserve the protection the bill would provide.

“I am happy our lawmakers are mobilizing to do again what the basic contract of a society is,” she said, “which is to protect our most vulnerable population: children.”

SB 1119 was opposed by business, software and technology trade groups. An organization representing California retailers was against SB 867. The Civil Justice Association of California, which pushes back on bills that would lead to more lawsuits for businesses in the state, opposed both measures.

The group said the audits required in the first bill could burden companies with repeated reviews and warned the second could invite more legal cases. That said, both passed the Legislature with strong bipartisan support.

It is unclear what Newsom will do with the measures. But during a news conference on Monday, he said in general he was happy with the work his staff, and legislators, did on the topic.

“We landed 90 planes on some of the toughest issues as it relates to chatbot bills and child safety,” Newsom said.

He has until the end of September to decide on the fate of these two bills.

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