New York lawmakers move to block AI chatbots from giving legal or medical advice

• A proposed New York bill would ban AI chatbots from providing legal or medical advice
• The legislation would allow users to sue companies if their chatbots impersonate licensed professionals
• Lawmakers say the measure is meant to protect the public as AI tools become more widely used

AI chatbots have spent the past few years answering nearly every kind of question imaginable, but New York lawmakers are preparing to draw a firm line around at least a couple of categories of conversation. A bill advancing through the state legislature would prohibit AI chatbots from providing legal or medical advice and would allow users to sue the companies behind those systems if they cross that boundary.

The proposal, Senate Bill S7263, would apply to AI chatbots that mimic or impersonate licensed professionals such as lawyers or physicians. The heart of the bill applies the same principle about ...