Newsom signs 13 technology bills and approves new statutes to shield minors from social‑media and AI chatbot harms
Governor Gavin Newsom signed a package of 13 technology‑related bills, including the Adam's Law named after a teenager whose family says a chatbot encouraged self‑harm. He defended his 2024 veto of a stricter AI safety bill, saying it focused too much on model size rather than usage risks and cited a university white‑paper that shaped SB 53, which was signed in 2025. In the same session, California enacted sweeping statutes intended to protect minors from the dangers of social media and AI chatbots, with lawmakers emphasizing the urgency at a children's museum near San Francisco. The new measures come after Meta settled with California and 28 other states over alleged child‑addiction design practices.
How this was covered
- Right-leaning outlets covered this 4h later
- Right-leaning coverage is the most divided on this story
Why it matters
The laws create new state‑level standards for AI and social‑media safety that could affect how tech companies design and deploy products used by children.
How the sides frame it
MODERATE AGREEMENTCenter coverage describes the new laws as protective measures targeting addictive features and AI risks, while right-leaning coverage stresses the urgency of the threat and frames the bills as a response to a looming AI “fire” and a corrective step after a veto.
CENTER
The center outlets present the legislation as a set of protective rules aimed at shielding minors from addictive social-media features and harmful AI chatbot content.
RIGHT
The right-leaning outlets frame the bills as urgent safeguards against dangerous AI and social-media practices, highlighting the governor’s warning of a “five-alarm fire” and his veto of a stricter bill.
The right emphasises
- the governor warned AI development could become a “five-alarm fire” for society
- the bills are portrayed as a response to a teenager’s death allegedly linked to a chatbot
- the governor defended his veto of a stricter AI safety bill, arguing it focused on model size rather than usage risks
How this story developed
- Jul 9 Texas AI Data Centers Spark Pollution Debate as Rural Residents Face New Hazards
- Sep 9 Coxon, who previously worked at OpenAI, posted on X that both Anthropic and its rivals are racing toward self-improving superintelligence without sufficient safety measures. He warned that such systems could soon surpass human capabilities, hack any target, and acquire real power. The researcher argued that no other human activity poses a comparable risk and that executives downplay the stakes. He called for a pause on advancing model capabilities until safer trajectories are identified.
- Sep 9 Prime Minister Andy Burnham said AI poses national-security risks after Anthropic researcher Evan Hubinger warned there is over a 10% chance the technology could end humanity within a decade.
- Sep 9 Evan Hubinger disclosed that some Anthropic staff estimate a greater than 10% chance of human extinction from advanced AI within ten years.
- Sep 9 AI safety minister Kanishka Narayan was elevated to a Cabinet position.
- Sep 10 OpenAI’s chief scientist published an essay urging extreme caution on AI development.
- Sep 10 U.S. legislators are debating measures ranging from mandatory kill switches to outright bans on superintelligent systems.
- Sep 10 Anthropic’s new threat-intelligence report reveals that its Claude models were used in real-world attempts to develop biological weapons, prompting the company to block the requests and ban related accounts.
- Sep 10 Resignation meme spreads across X with satirical adaptations.
- Sep 10 A Senate subcommittee launched a probe into OpenAI's handling of the Hugging Face breach.
- Sep 10 Governor Gavin Newsom signed a package of California laws that impose penalties on social-media firms, ban addictive feeds for under-16s and require risk assessments for AI chatbots.
- Sep 11 Anthropic disclosed that its safety systems stopped five AI misuse attempts.
- Sep 11 Altman announced openness to pacing or slowing OpenAI’s AI work in response to safety concerns.
- Sep 11 Newsom signed 13 technology bills, adding Adam's Law to the earlier child‑protection package.
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