GUARD Act
Key claim: This Senate bill would make it a federal crime to offer AI chatbots that expose minors to sexual content or encourage them to harm themselves or others, bar minors from AI companion apps unless the provider verifies the user is an adult, and require public AI chatbots to disclose they are not human or licensed professionals.
Abstract
(S3062 · 119th Congress) Guidelines for User Age-verification and Responsible Dialogue Act of 2026 or the GUARD Act This bill establishes requirements for and limitations on entities that provide publicly available artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots, including AI companions. Under the bill, an AI chatbot is an application or program that simulates human conversation by generating responses to user prompts. An AI companion is a type of AI chatbot that simulates a sustained interpersonal relationship or emotional interaction with the user. The bill makes it a federal crime to provide an AI chatbot that exposes minors to sexual content or encourages minors to commit suicide or carry out nonsuicidal self-injury, unlawful physical or sexual violence, or homicide. A violation is subject to a criminal fine of up to $250,000 per offense. Additionally, the bill prohibits minors from accessing AI companions. Under the bill, an entity that provides an AI chatbot must require each individual who accesses an AI companion to set up a user account and must also verify that the user is an adult. A violation is subject to a civil penalty of up to $250,000 per violation. Finally, the bill requires an AI chatbot that is publicly available to disclose that the AI chatbot is not a human and is not a licensed professional (e.g. doctor, lawyer, or therapist). A violation is subject to a civil penalty of up to $250,000 per violation. Latest action (2026-05-11): Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 406.
Why this matters
The GUARD Act would be one of the first federal statutes to criminalize specific AI chatbot behaviors toward minors and to mandate age verification for AI companion products, shifting liability from platform-style safe harbors toward direct provider responsibility. For developers, it introduces design-time obligations (age gating, content filters, identity disclosures) backed by criminal exposure; for users, it changes what AI products minors can access and how chatbots must represent themselves. Status is pre-committee introduction, so terms may shift substantially before any floor vote.