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California SB 243: companion chatbots

Disclose AI where a reasonable person could be misled; for known minors, remind at least every three hours and prevent sexually explicit content; run a suicide and self-harm protocol with crisis referral; annual reports from 2027-07-01

By Reviewed

From clause to evidenceThe chain from California SB 243 to its evidence record, in 6 steps; the text alternative lists them and the facts under the figure state each in full.Clause: California SB 243 (companion chatbots), SB 243ClauseCalifornia SB243SB 243Duty holder: Operators of companion chatbotsDuty holderOperators ofcompanion…Applies from: 2026-01-01 (In force)Applies from2026-01-01In forceArtefact: Companion-mode policy; reminder timer; crisis-referral classifier and log; annual reportArtefactCompanion-modepolicyLayers: Layer 01 Govern-as-Code and Layer 04 Runtime Controls & Observability and Layer 05 Assurance & Continuous ComplianceLayersLayer 01Layer 04Layer 05Evidence record: the common evidence record (Evidence record v1)Evidence recordEvidence recordv1Same topic elsewhere: no crosswalk topic files this clause yetAs of 2026-09-24 · illustrative, not a claim of conformity From clause to evidenceThe chain from California SB 243 to its evidence record, in 6 steps; the text alternative lists them and the facts under the figure state each in full.Clause: California SB 243 (companion chatbots), SB 243ClauseCalifornia SB 243 · SB 243Duty holder: Operators of companion chatbotsDuty holderOperators of companion chatbotsApplies from: 2026-01-01 (In force)Applies from2026-01-01 · In forceArtefact: Companion-mode policy; reminder timer; crisis-referral classifier and log; annual reportArtefactCompanion-mode policyLayers: Layer 01 Govern-as-Code and Layer 04 Runtime Controls & Observability and Layer 05 Assurance & Continuous ComplianceLayersLayer 01Layer 04Layer 05Evidence record: the common evidence record (Evidence record v1)Evidence recordEvidence record v1Same topic elsewhere: no crosswalk topicfiles this clause yetAs of 2026-09-24illustrative, not a claim of conformity
From clause to evidence Build the artefact, then file every output it produces as a record that names AIGE-OBL-USCA-SB243. Drawn from chapter 08.
Text alternative
  • Clause: California SB 243, SB 243.
  • Duty holder: Operators of companion chatbots.
  • Applies from: 2026-01-01, In force.
  • Artefact: Companion-mode policy.
  • Layers: Layer 01, Layer 04, Layer 05.
  • Evidence record: Evidence record v1.
  • Record schema: Evidence record.
  • No crosswalk topic files this clause yet.
When this obligation applies2 dates of AIGE-OBL-USCA-SB243 on a time axis, against its review date 2026-09-24.2024202620282030As of 2026-09-242026-01-01 · In forceChaptered 2025-10-13; inforce 2026-01-01 as anon-urgency statute (to beconfirmed); annual reportsfrom 2027-07-012027-07-01 · Later stepAnnual reports to the Office ofSuicide Prevention begin2026-01-01 · In force · Chaptered 2025-10-13; in force 2026-01-01 as a non-urgency statute (to be confirmed); annual reports from 2027-07-012027-07-01 · Later step · Annual reports to the Office of Suicide Prevention beginSource: Obligation register(chapter 08)
When this obligation applies2 dates of AIGE-OBL-USCA-SB243 on a time axis, against its review date 2026-09-24.2026-01-01 · In forceChaptered 2025-10-13; in force 2026-01-01as a non-urgency statute (to be confirmed);annual reports from 2027-07-012027-07-01 · Later stepAnnual reports to the Office of SuicidePrevention begin2024202620282030As of 2026-09-242026-01-01 · In force · Chaptered 2025-10-13; in force 2026-01-01 as a non-urgency statute (to be confirmed); annual reports from 2027-07-012027-07-01 · Later step · Annual reports to the Office of Suicide Prevention beginSource: Obligation register (chapter 08)
When this obligation applies The first date in the row's status, then each later step: filled once its date has passed, outlined while it is still ahead of the review date.
Data table: the dates
Dates of AIGE-OBL-USCA-SB243
DateStepDetail
2026-01-01In forceChaptered 2025-10-13; in force 2026-01-01 as a non-urgency statute (to be confirmed); annual reports from 2027-07-01
2027-07-01Later stepAnnual reports to the Office of Suicide Prevention begin
Id
AIGE-OBL-USCA-SB243
Instrument
California SB 243 (companion chatbots) law
Clause
SB 243
In scope
Operators of companion chatbots
Authority
Private right of action
Applies from
In force · Chaptered 2025-10-13; in force 2026-01-01 as a non-urgency statute (to be confirmed); annual reports from 2027-07-01
Later dates
  • Annual reports to the Office of Suicide Prevention begin

The artefact that evidences it

Companion-mode policy; reminder timer; crisis-referral classifier and log; annual report.

Patterns that build it

No pattern in the catalogue names this clause on its "Maps to" line yet; the artefact above is the engineering answer.

Source

Chapter 08, section Other state AI laws, checked against its sources on the review date above.

Machine-readable

Cite this obligation

García Aibar, J. (2026). California SB 243: companion chatbots (AIGE-OBL-USCA-SB243). In AI Governance Engineering: The Thesis & Body of Knowledge (v0.5.0). https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22956197. https://aigovernanceengineer.com/obligations/aige-obl-usca-sb243. CC BY 4.0

BibTeX

@misc{aige2026obligation,
  author       = {Jorge García Aibar},
  title        = {{California SB 243: companion chatbots (AIGE-OBL-USCA-SB243)}},
  howpublished = {In AI Governance Engineering: The Thesis \& Body of Knowledge},
  year         = {2026},
  version      = {0.5.0},
  doi          = {10.5281/zenodo.22956197},
  url          = {https://aigovernanceengineer.com/obligations/aige-obl-usca-sb243},
  note         = {Version 0.5.0}
}