Artificial Intelligence Companion Models
RI AI Companion Act
Artificial intelligence · Children · Health
Beginning January 1, 2027, companion chatbots offered in Rhode Island must include protocols to respond to users who express suicidal ideation, self-harm or intent to harm others, including referral to crisis services, and must remind users at the start of a conversation and at least every three hours that they are not talking to a human. Operators must file annual safety-protocol reports with the Attorney General starting July 1, 2027.
- Where
- Rhode Island
- Citation
- R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 6-64-1 to 6-64-5 (P.L. 2026, ch. 375 and ch. 376)
- Status
- Enacted, not yet in force
- In force since
- 2027-01-01
- Enforced by
- Rhode Island Attorney General
- People can sue
- No
- Penalties
- Civil penalties up to ,000 per day, directed to suicide prevention programs; the Attorney General may investigate, sue and seek injunctions (§ 6-64-4).
- Applies to
- Operators (any person or business, including affiliates and owners) that operate or provide an AI companion to users in Rhode Island
- AI companion means an AI system that simulates a sustained human-like relationship by retaining prior interactions and preferences, asking unprompted emotion-based questions, and sustaining personal dialogue
- Excludes customer-service bots, efficiency, research or technical-assistance tools, and internal business systems
What a privacy notice must say
- Clearly and conspicuously tell users, verbally or in writing, at the beginning of any AI companion interaction and at least every three hours during continuing interactions, that they are not communicating with a human.R.I. Gen. Laws § 6-64-3 · From 2027-01-01
Practices it requires
- Do not operate or provide an AI companion unless it contains a protocol for addressing possible suicidal ideation, self-harm or physical harm to others expressed by a user, including an immediate notification referring the user to crisis services such as a suicide hotline or crisis text line.R.I. Gen. Laws § 6-64-2(a) · From 2027-01-01
Registration
- File annual reports with the Attorney General including the number of safety protocol activations and related metrics; the Attorney General publishes aggregated data.R.I. Gen. Laws § 6-64-2(b) · From 2027-07-01
Sources
- Official text
- P.L. 2026, ch. 375 (2026-H 7350 Sub A as amended), enacted 06/22/2026 (Rhode Island General Assembly)
- 2026 Public Laws list by chapter number (chs. 375 and 376)
Checked against these sources on 2026-09-25 by research agent (Claude), primary sources.
Unverified: Not yet posted in the online General Laws; section numbers (6-64) come from the public law's amended text, which renumbered the chapter from 63 to 64. | Companion Senate act P.L. 2026, ch. 376 (2026-S 2195 Sub A) not fetched; assumed identical.
Research reference, not legal advice.