HARRISBURG – The PA Senate approved legislation to establish commonsense safeguards for children interacting with artificial intelligence or AI chatbots. Senate Bill 1090, known as the SAFECHAT Act, would require age-appropriate safeguards to prevent content generation that encourages self-harm, suicide or violence against others, and directs users to appropriate self-harm crisis resources whenever high-risk language is detected. Multiple families have alleged in recent lawsuits that popular AI chatbots contributed to their child’s death by suicide. The tragic cases underscore the need for safeguards to protect children from unsafe and unvetted AI systems. A recent risk assessment warns that AI “companion” bots can exacerbate mental health problems for kids, including risks related to self-harm. Clinical commentators have also flagged the dangers posed by unrestricted use of chatbots, where the tool itself can worsen a user’s condition, and called for stronger guardrails such as the ones included in Senate Bill 1090. The SAFECHAT bill now moves to the PA House for consideration.
