S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6767
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              March 13, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. VANEL -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Consumer Affairs and Protection
 
 AN ACT to amend the general business  law,  in  relation  to  artificial
   intelligence companion models (Part __);
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

                                  PART __
 
   Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new article
 47 to read as follows:
                                 ARTICLE 47
                 ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE COMPANION MODELS
 SECTION. 1700. DEFINITIONS.
          1701. PROHIBITIONS AND REQUIREMENTS.
          1702. NOTIFICATIONS.
          1703. ENFORCEMENT.
          1704. SEVERABILITY.
   § 1700. DEFINITIONS. AS USED IN  THIS  ARTICLE,  THE  FOLLOWING  TERMS
 SHALL HAVE THE FOLLOWING MEANINGS:
   1. "ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE", "ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TECHNOLOGY", OR
 "AI" MEANS A MACHINE-BASED SYSTEM THAT CAN, FOR A GIVEN SET OF HUMAN-DE-
 FINED OBJECTIVES, MAKE PREDICTIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS, OR DECISIONS INFLU-
 ENCING  REAL  OR VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENTS, AND THAT USES MACHINE- AND HUMAN-
 BASED INPUTS TO PERCEIVE REAL AND VIRTUAL  ENVIRONMENTS,  ABSTRACT  SUCH
 PERCEPTIONS INTO MODELS THROUGH ANALYSIS IN AN AUTOMATED MANNER, AND USE
 MODEL INFERENCE TO FORMULATE OPTIONS FOR INFORMATION OR ACTION.
   2.  "GENERATIVE  ARTIFICIAL  INTELLIGENCE"  MEANS A CLASS OF AI MODELS
 THAT ARE SELF-SUPERVISED AND EMULATE THE STRUCTURE  AND  CHARACTERISTICS
 OF  INPUT DATA TO GENERATE DERIVED SYNTHETIC CONTENT, INCLUDING, BUT NOT
 LIMITED TO, IMAGES, VIDEOS, AUDIO, TEXT, AND OTHER DIGITAL CONTENT.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD10829-01-5
 A. 6767                             2
              

 
   3. "AI MODEL" MEANS A COMPONENT OF AN INFORMATION SYSTEM  THAT  IMPLE-
 MENTS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TECHNOLOGY AND USES COMPUTATIONAL, STATIS-
 TICAL,  OR  MACHINE-LEARNING  TECHNIQUES TO PRODUCE OUTPUTS FROM A GIVEN
 SET OF INPUTS.
   4. "AI COMPANION" MEANS A SYSTEM USING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, GENER-
 ATIVE  ARTIFICIAL  INTELLIGENCE, AND/OR EMOTIONAL RECOGNITION ALGORITHMS
 TO SIMULATE SOCIAL HUMAN INTERACTION, BY RETAINING INFORMATION ON  PRIOR
 INTERACTIONS  AND  USER  PREFERENCE, ASKING QUESTIONS, PROVIDING ADVICE,
 AND ENGAGING IN SIMULATED CONVERSATION ON MATTERS OF  PERSONAL  WELL-BE-
 ING.  "AI  COMPANION"  SHALL  NOT  INCLUDE ANY SYSTEM USED BY A BUSINESS
 ENTITY SOLELY INTENDED TO PROVIDE USERS WITH INFORMATION ABOUT AVAILABLE
 COMMERCIAL SERVICES OR PRODUCTS, CUSTOMER ACCOUNT INFORMATION, OR  OTHER
 INFORMATION  RELATED  TO  A  USER'S  CUSTOMER,  OR  POTENTIAL  CUSTOMER,
 RELATIONSHIP WITH SUCH BUSINESS ENTITY.
   5. "OPERATOR" MEANS ANY PERSON,  PARTNERSHIP,  ASSOCIATION,  FIRM,  OR
 BUSINESS  ENTITY,  OR  ANY  MEMBER,  AFFILIATE, SUBSIDIARY OR BENEFICIAL
 OWNER OF ANY PARTNERSHIP, ASSOCIATION,  FIRM,  OR  BUSINESS  ENTITY  WHO
 OPERATES OR PROVIDES AN AI COMPANION.
   6. "PERSON" MEANS ANY NATURAL PERSON.
   7.  "EMOTIONAL  RECOGNITION  ALGORITHMS" MEANS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
 THAT DETECTS AND INTERPRETS  HUMAN  EMOTIONAL  SIGNALS  IN  TEXT  (USING
 NATURAL  LANGUAGE PROCESSING AND SENTIMENT ANALYSIS), AUDIO (USING VOICE
 EMOTION AI), VIDEO (USING FACIAL MOVEMENT ANALYSIS,  GAIT  ANALYSIS,  OR
 PHYSIOLOGICAL SIGNALS), OR A COMBINATION THEREOF.
   8.  "USER"  MEANS ANY PERSON WHO USES AN AI COMPANION WITHIN THE STATE
 AND WHO IS NOT AN OPERATOR OR AGENT OR AFFILIATE OF THE OPERATOR OF  THE
 AI COMPANION.
   §  1701.  PROHIBITIONS AND REQUIREMENTS.  IT SHALL BE UNLAWFUL FOR ANY
 OPERATOR TO OPERATE OR PROVIDE AN AI COMPANION TO A USER UNLESS SUCH  AI
 COMPANION CONTAINS A PROTOCOL FOR ADDRESSING: 1. POSSIBLE SUICIDAL IDEA-
 TION  OR  SELF-HARM EXPRESSED BY A USER TO THE AI COMPANION, 2. POSSIBLE
 PHYSICAL HARM TO OTHERS EXPRESSED BY A USER TO THE AI COMPANION, AND  3.
 POSSIBLE  FINANCIAL  HARM  TO  OTHERS  EXPRESSED  BY  THE USER TO THE AI
 COMPANION, THAT INCLUDES BUT IS NOT LIMITED TO, A  NOTIFICATION  TO  THE
 USER  THAT  REFERS  THEM  TO  CRISIS SERVICE PROVIDERS SUCH AS A SUICIDE
 HOTLINE, CRISIS TEXT LINE, OR OTHER APPROPRIATE CRISIS SERVICES.
   § 1702. NOTIFICATIONS. AN OPERATOR SHALL PROVIDE A NOTIFICATION  TO  A
 USER AT THE BEGINNING OF ANY AI COMPANION INTERACTION AND AT LEAST EVERY
 THREE  HOURS  FOR CONTINUING AI COMPANION INTERACTIONS THEREAFTER, WHICH
 STATES EITHER VERBALLY OR IN BOLD AND CAPITALIZED LETTERS  OF  AT  LEAST
 SIXTEEN POINT TYPE, THE FOLLOWING:
   "THE  AI COMPANION (OR NAME OF THE AI COMPANION) IS A COMPUTER PROGRAM
 AND NOT A HUMAN BEING. IT IS UNABLE TO FEEL HUMAN EMOTION".
   § 1703. ENFORCEMENT. ANY PERSON WHO  WAS  PHYSICALLY  INJURED  THROUGH
 SELF-HARM OR WAS PHYSICALLY OR FINANCIALLY HARMED BY ANOTHER AS A RESULT
 OF A VIOLATION OF SECTION SEVENTEEN HUNDRED ONE OR SEVENTEEN HUNDRED TWO
 OF THIS ARTICLE MAY BRING AN ACTION IN A COURT OF COMPETENT JURISDICTION
 FOR  DAMAGES, EQUITABLE RELIEF, AND SUCH OTHER REMEDIES AS THE COURT MAY
 DEEM APPROPRIATE.
   § 1704. SEVERABILITY. IF ANY CLAUSE, SENTENCE, PARAGRAPH, SUBDIVISION,
 SECTION OR PART OF THIS ACT SHALL BE ADJUDGED BY ANY COURT OF  COMPETENT
 JURISDICTION  TO  BE INVALID, SUCH JUDGMENT SHALL NOT AFFECT, IMPAIR, OR
 INVALIDATE THE REMAINDER THEREOF, BUT SHALL BE CONFINED IN ITS OPERATION
 TO THE CLAUSE, SENTENCE, PARAGRAPH, SUBDIVISION, SECTION OR PART THEREOF
 DIRECTLY INVOLVED IN THE CONTROVERSY IN WHICH SUCH JUDGMENT  SHALL  HAVE
 BEEN RENDERED. IT IS HEREBY DECLARED TO BE THE INTENT OF THE LEGISLATURE
 A. 6767                             3
 
 THAT  THIS  ACT  WOULD HAVE BEEN ENACTED EVEN IF SUCH INVALID PROVISIONS
 HAD NOT BEEN INCLUDED HEREIN.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
 it shall have become a law.