California lawmakers pass bill to ban deepfakes, regulate AI

California lawmakers this week approved a series of proposals aimed at regulating the artificial intelligence industry, combating deepfakes and protecting workers from exploitation by the rapidly evolving technology.

California’s Democratic-controlled Legislature is voting on hundreds of bills in the final week of the session to send them to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk, with a deadline of Saturday.

The Democratic governor has until Sept. 30 to sign the bills, veto them or allow them to go into effect without his signature. Newsom spotted in july He will sign a bill to tackle election deepfakes, but has not yet considered other legislation.

He warned earlier this summer that overregulation could harm domestic industry. In recent years, he has often problems with the state budget in rejecting legislation he would otherwise support.

Concerns are raised about the way AI tools are increasingly being used to mislead voters and generate deepfake pornography of minorsCalifornia lawmakers this week passed several bills aimed at cracking down on the practice.

Lawmakers have approved legislation to ban election-related deepfakes and require major social media platforms to remove misleading material 120 days before Election Day and 60 days afterward. Campaigns would also have to publicly disclose whether they run ads with AI-altered material.

A pair of proposals would make it illegal to use AI tools to create images and videos of child sexual abuse. Current law does not allow district attorneys to prosecute people who possess or distribute AI-generated images of child sexual abuse if they cannot prove the materials depict a real person.

Another proposal would require tech companies and social media platforms to provide users with AI detection tools.

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