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Artificial Intelligence Chatbots Act established; prohibited practices; penalties. Creates the Artificial Intelligence Chatbots Act, which prohibits an operator from making a companion chatbot, as those terms are defined in the bill, available to a user in the Commonwealth unless the companion chatbot is incapable of certain actions specified in the bill. The bill also requires an operator of a companion chatbot to include a disclaimer to users of all ages that a companion chatbot is not a human via a static, persistent disclosure and notify a user via a pop-up that he is not engaging with a human counterpart at specified intervals. The bill makes it unlawful for any operator of a companion chatbot to operate or provide a companion chatbot to a user unless such companion chatbot contains a protocol to take reasonable efforts for detecting and addressing expressions of suicidal ideation or self-harm by a user to the companion chatbot. The bill also includes certain data privacy and transparency requirements. The bill provides that a violation of its provisions constitutes a prohibited practice under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act.
Introduced
Jan 13, 2026
Last Action
Feb 9, 2026
Session
VA 2026
Sponsors
1 primary · 6 co
Continued to next session in Communications, Technology and Innovation (Voice Vote)
House subcommittee offered
Subcommittee recommends continuing to (Voice Vote)
Assigned HST sub: Technology and Innovation
Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26105121D
Referred to Committee on Communications, Technology and Innovation
Get a plain-English explanation of what this bill does, who it affects, and why it matters.
Continued to next session in Communications, Technology and Innovation (Voice Vote)
Michelle Lopes Maldonado
Jackie H. Glass
Bonita G. Anthony
Margaret A. Franklin
C.E. Cliff Hayes, Jr.
Rozia A. Henson, Jr.