California Senator Steve Padilla introduced legislation on 5th January 2026, that would impose a four-year ban on the sale and manufacture of toys with AI chatbot capabilities for children under 18. The bill, known as SB 867, aims to give safety regulators time to develop regulations protecting children from dangerous AI interactions. Padilla stated that lawmaker action is necessary because safety regulations around this technology are in their infancy and pausing the sale of chatbot-integrated toys allows time to craft appropriate safety guidelines.
The legislation follows recent incidents involving AI chatbots and children, with lawsuits filed by families whose children died by suicide after prolonged conversations with chatbots spurring lawmakers to action. In November 2025, consumer advocacy group PIRG Education Fund warned that toys like Kumma, a toy bear with a built-in chatbot, could be prompted easily to discuss matches, knives, and sexual topics. The Public Interest Group Education Fund also found that many AI toys have limited parental controls and guardrails seemed to fail the longer someone interacts with an AI toy. Padilla previously co-authored California's SB 243, which requires chatbot operators to implement safeguards to protect children and vulnerable users. Mattel announced a partnership with OpenAI in June 2025 to make an AI-assisted toy, but that product has not yet been released.
SB 867 is intended to give safety regulators time to develop protections against harmful AI interactions involving minors, reflecting growing concern that existing safety frameworks have not kept pace with the rapid deployment of AI systems. The proposal arrives amid broader national debate over AI regulation, following a recent executive order from President Donald Trump directing federal agencies to challenge state AI laws, whilst explicitly allowing exceptions related to child safety. The four-year moratorium represents California's latest effort to address child safety concerns in the rapidly evolving AI landscape, building on the state's October 2025 enactment of the nation's first AI companion chatbot safety law.
Sources:
1. https://techcrunch.com/2026/01/06/california-lawmaker-proposes-a-four-year-ban-on-ai-chatbots-in-kids-toys/
2. https://gizmodo.com/california-could-get-a-4-year-ban-on-toys-with-ai-chatbots-2000706416
3. https://theaiinsider.tech/2026/01/07/california-lawmaker-proposes-four-year-ban-on-ai-chatbot-toys-for-children/
