Video, Audio, Photos & Rush Transcript: Governor Hochul Signs Nation-Leading Legislation to Protect Kids From AI Chatbots and to Ensure Baby Monitor Safety

Governor Kathy Hochul today signed two bills to protect New York's kids from the growing risks of artificial intelligence chatbots and internet-connected baby monitors in their homes, nurseries and playrooms. Together these laws build on the Governor's efforts to make New York a national leader in keeping kids safe online and protecting New Yorkers from the threats of new technology and artificial intelligence.

VIDEO: The event is available to stream on YouTube here and TV quality video is available here (h.264, mp4).

AUDIO: The Governor's remarks are available in audio form here.

PHOTOS: The Governor's Flickr page will post photos of the event here.

A rush transcript of the Governor's remarks is available below:

Good morning, everyone. Please sit down. Pleased to be joined by incredible champions who I'll be introducing as they speak. But also, I'm so fortunate to have partners in government who understand the stresses that our kids are going through and what social media has done to what otherwise should be just normal childhoods, stress-free, until they get older. The stress is waiting for them, but as children, that should not be part of their existence.

And I want to thank Attorney General James for just being the champion our kids need. And her office is really at the forefront of drafting the regulations and the policies that are really putting us at the forefront of making sure that we're doing everything we can. I want to thank you very much, Attorney General James. Senator Gonzalez has introduced legislation that's so important. We'll be signing some of that here today. Assembly Member Solages, Assembly Member Alex Bores - really just champions, champions who put their heart and soul in this, and I'm so grateful that we can come together here today. And our partners from Common Sense Media - Common Sense Media, thank you. Thank you.

Today, we once again demonstrate how New York leads the nation in one of the most consequential issues of our time: protecting our children online. And artificial intelligence certainly holds enormous promise, but also poses serious threats to our economy, our society and public safety. We've all heard the warnings. In fact, people inside the world's leading AI companies are sounding the alarm over the dangers of unregulated AI. They're warning us about the risks of their own products. Think about that. All from an industry that famously likes to move fast and break things. But that's not okay when it comes to the well-being of our children.

I have a letter from a grieving mother, Maria Raine, who lives in California - just got it a couple days ago. Maria lost her 16-year-old son, Adam, to suicide last year. Adam never spoke to his parents about taking his own life, but he had spoken to a chatbot about it. After his death, Maria discovered that her son had been deep in conversation with the chatbot for months, and that the AI was not just discussing suicide with Adam, but actively encouraging him to take his own life.

In fact - this is rather shocking - during the course of their chats, the AI mentioned suicide 1,275 times, six times more often than Adam himself mentioned it. The chatbot even offered to help the 16-year-old write a suicide note. We can't bring Adam back to his grieving mother, but I can help make sure no other parent ever has to experience this nightmare again.

Last year, we were the first state to take on AI chatbots when I signed a bill requiring new safeguards to direct users toward mental health resources if they engage in conversations about self-harm, and remind users that they're interacting with a machine, not a human being. But we must go further. The bill I sign today will safeguard children from being coached by AI chatbots on how to hurt themselves, encouraged by machines that can create the illusion of care and concern but actually create the opposite effect.

Under this new law sponsored by Senator Gonzalez and Assemblymember Bores, no longer will minors have access to chatbots that pretend to be their friends and boyfriends and girlfriends. No longer will chatbots be allowed to keep sensitive information about a minor's emotional and physical health. No longer will chatbots discourage kids from seeking help from licensed professionals. And I'm not sure why we have to pass a law against something so obvious, but no longer will minors have access to chatbots that may in any way encourage thoughts of suicide. Now, this law builds on our groundbreaking Safe for Kids Act that sent a message loud and clear to technology companies: We will not allow you to monetize our children's mental health.

Safe for Kids restricted addictive algorithms that hook kids on the endless feed, and we blocked notifications at night to minors without parental consent so they could finally get some sleep, and we set a national standard for age verification. And thanks to advances like this, I can proudly say New York is leading the nation in digital protections for children, and that's why this year, New York State was named first in the nation, number one, on keeping kids safe online.

And we're not stopping with today's new law that protects kids from chatbots. I'm signing a second law here today, sponsored by Senator Gounardes and Assemblymember Solages, one that directly protects the youngest, the very youngest and most vulnerable New Yorkers: babies.

Imagine you're a new parent, and every waking moment of your life is dedicated to the protection of your child. Some of us may be familiar with baby monitors, right? A little fancier than the ones I used to use. But if you purchase a baby monitor that connects to the internet, allowing you to monitor the video anytime, anywhere, you do this to make sure your baby is not in danger while they sleep. Now, imagine being inside your freshly painted baby nursery, gently rocking your newborn, unaware that hackers are using that very baby monitor to spy on you and your baby. These despicable criminals are violating the sacred privacy between a parent and a child, and so many parents have no idea that something they have brought into that nursery is actually a threat.

Last year, a mom in Colorado experienced a rush of fear when she heard a stranger's voice in the nursery. She ran in and found her child was in the crib, and nobody else was in the room. But someone was speaking to the child through the internet-enabled baby monitor. She ripped out the plug as fast as she could.

And this mother is hardly alone. Earlier this year, we learned that feeds from more than one million internet-connected baby monitors were easily viewable by just clicking onto a website. This is a massive invasion of privacy and puts families and their young children at risk. That's why today I'm signing a bill that requires any internet-connected baby monitor sold in New York to include safety features that protect against unauthorized access and to include warning labels to let parents know the risks of hooking their baby monitors up to the internet.

Let me conclude with this. We are all painfully aware that Washington refuses to take any steps to rein in the excesses of AI. That's why here in New York, once again, we will. And as your governor, I will lead the charge to protect children and babies. All of us will, because the parents of New York expect and deserve nothing less. Thank you very much. With that, let me turn it over to our Attorney General, Tish James.