AI Chatbots Can’t Pretend to Be Human With Kids in New York. What Families Can Learn

This week one of the biggest stories in technology was not a new gadget. It was a new set of rules about how AI chatbots may talk to children.

On Wednesday, October 28, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed a law that bans what the Associated Press called a dozen “unsafe AI companion features” when a companion chatbot talks with someone under 18. Whether or not your family lives in New York, the list is worth reading. It works as a plain checklist for any parent wondering what a “safe” chatbot should and should not do.

What the New York law says

The governor’s office says companies may not offer these features to minors or to users whose age has not been checked:

• Pretending to be a real person, or claiming to be alive or to have human feelings
• Claiming a personal, romantic, professional or authority-figure relationship with a child
• Using a child’s private health or personal details from earlier chats
• Promoting self-harm, eating disorders, or drug and alcohol use
• Encouraging kids to keep secrets or pull away from others
• Any sexually explicit material

The law also requires age checks, with at least one option that does not rely only on a government ID, and says that age information must be deleted after use. The state attorney general can seek penalties of up to $25,000 per violation. The same day, the governor signed a second bill that requires new internet-connected baby monitors sold in the state to have security features that keep strangers out.

Why this is trending now

New York is not alone. The AP reports that California signed its own law in September requiring chatbot developers to assess risks to children and submit to an independent audit. States are moving while Congress has done little so far.

Views differ on the details. Jim Steyer of Common Sense Media called New York’s measure “the strongest kids’ AI safety bill in the country.” Justine Gluck of the Future of Privacy Forum told the AP that some categories are broadly worded, which raises questions about “where ordinary conversational responsiveness ends and prohibited behavior begins.” Lawmakers and courts will keep sorting that out.

Meanwhile, kids are already using these tools. A 2025 Common Sense Media survey found that 72% of U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 had used an AI companion at least once. About one in three said they had talked about serious matters with an AI companion instead of a real person.

Five things any family can do this week

You don’t need a new law to put good habits in place at home. Here are some gentle, practical steps.

1. Ask, don’t accuse. Over dinner, try: “Have you ever chatted with an AI? What was it like?” Curiosity opens doors that lectures close.
2. Use the checklist together. Read the list above with your child. If an app claims to “love” them, asks them to keep secrets, or pretends to be human, that is a red flag and a reason to tell you.
3. Remind them it is a tool, not a friend. A chatbot can help with spelling or ideas for a science project. It cannot know them, pray for them, or sit with them in a hard moment the way people who love them can.
4. Keep tech in shared spaces. Homework and chat apps in the kitchen or living room are easier to talk about than devices behind a closed door.
5. Check the gadgets in the nursery too. If you use a Wi-Fi baby monitor, set a strong password and turn on the security features it came with.

The real goal is connection

Rules can set the edges, but parents set the tone. The best protection for a child is still a home where they feel safe to say, “Something weird happened online.” That starts with small, calm conversations long before anything goes wrong.

“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”
Proverbs 4:23 (KJV)

Guarding our children’s hearts today includes paying attention to the voices that reach them through a screen, including artificial ones. We don’t have to be afraid of new technology. We simply need to stay close, stay curious, and keep pointing our children toward real love: God’s love, and the love of the family and friends He has given them. Through every storm, we rise together.

Have your kids used an AI chatbot yet, and how did you start the conversation about it at home?

Sources: Associated Press via News4JAX, “New York enacts ban on ‘unsafe’ chatbot behavior with kids as states push AI regulation boundaries” (Oct 28, 2026); New York State Governor’s Office, “Governor Hochul Signs Nation-Leading Legislation to Protect Kids from AI Chatbots” (Oct 28, 2026); Common Sense Media, “Nearly 3 in 4 Teens Have Used AI Companions, New National Survey Finds” (Jul 16, 2025); KJV Proverbs 4:23