This bill, the CHATBOT Act, would stop companies or people who deploy AI chatbots from saying or implying that their chatbot or its output is from a licensed professional when it is not. It also stops chatbots from falsely saying a human with a professional license verified the output. The bill defines when a chatbot "implies" licensure and lists covered professions: finance and insurance, health care and social assistance, legal services, and accounting/tax/bookkeeping/payroll. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) must issue guidance within 12 months and would enforce the rule as an unfair or deceptive practice under the FTC Act. The bill allows states to sue as parens patriae and preserves state licensing laws. It creates a private right of action for people harmed, with damages for actual monetary loss or up to $5,000 per violation (adjustable for inflation) and possible treble damages for willful violations.
If you operate or deploy an AI chatbot that gives finance, health, legal, or accounting-type advice, you may not present the chatbot or its output as if a licensed professional produced or verified it unless a licensed professional actually did so. The FTC would oversee compliance. States and private individuals could bring lawsuits for violations and seek damages and legal fees as described in the bill. If you use chatbots as a consumer, the bill would bar chatbots from claiming they are licensed professionals or that licensed humans verified their answers.
No publicly available information on new federal outlays or budget estimates is included in the bill text. The bill specifies civil damages of actual monetary loss or up to $5,000 per violation (adjusted for inflation) and allows courts to award up to 3 times that amount for willful violations. It also authorizes the FTC to use its existing enforcement authorities.
No publicly available information.
No publicly available information.