NEWTOWN, Conn. – As young people increasingly turn to AI chatbots for advice, companionship, and support, Sandy Hook Promise (SHP) is encouraging Colorado to establish clear, enforceable safeguards to ensure these platforms recognize warning signs of violence and distress, properly evaluate potential risk, and steer young people towards a trusted adult.
Today, Zachary Brown, Senior Manager of State Policy at Sandy Hook Promise, testified before Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser on proposed rules implementing the state’s Chatbot Safety Act. SHP encouraged the Colorado Department of Law to establish enforceable standards for age verification, crisis response, transparency, and “therapist-style” AI personas that could lead young people to mistake a chatbot for a mental health professional.
SHP’s testimony highlighted the need for enforceable safeguards, since according to data, eight in ten chatbots tested would typically help a user posing as a 13-year-old plan a violent attack on a school, place of worship, or public official. Nine in ten failed to reliably discourage the attack.
“When a young person is struggling, the response matters. We teach students to recognize warning signs of a young person in crisis, take them seriously, and reach out to a trusted adult for support. AI companies should be held to that same basic expectation: their products should help connect young people to trusted adults who can help, not deepen their isolation or make a dangerous situation worse,” said Nicole Hockley, co-founder and CEO of Sandy Hook Promise and mother of Dylan who was killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy.
“Colorado has an opportunity to set a national standard for responsible AI,” said Lauren Levin, chief advocacy officer of the Sandy Hook Promise Action Fund. “A chatbot should never be the last stop for a young person in crisis. Clear enforceable rules can require these products to recognize when a child is struggling and connect them to a trusted adult or real help, so that innovation reinforces kids’ safety instead of putting it at risk.”
As AI becomes a growing part of young lives, Sandy Hook Promise is calling on elected officials and policymakers to ensure that technology reinforces these efforts and that companies are held accountable for the risks their products pose.
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The Sandy Hook Promise Action Fund (SHPAF) is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization committed to protecting all children from gun violence in schools, homes, and communities. The SHP Action Fund advances a holistic policy platform that promotes gun safety, youth mental health, and violence prevention education. The organization works at the state and federal level to pass nonpartisan legislation through inclusive partnerships, diverse grassroots education, and community mobilization. It is part of Sandy Hook Promise, founded and led by several family members whose loved ones were killed in the tragic mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14, 2012.
Media Contact:
Claudia Montecinos | [email protected] | 203-304-9780 Ext. 336