California backs down on AI laws so more tech leaders don't flee the state (www.latimes.com)

California Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed AB 1064, a bill that would have barred “companion” chatbots from interacting with minors unless they were not “foreseeably capable” of encouraging self‑harm. The decision followed an intense lobbying campaign and public pressure from major tech firms (Meta, Google, OpenAI, Apple and others) and trade groups that warned heavy regulation would drive innovation and jobs out of the state. Advocates who sponsored the bill, including Common Sense Media, say the veto is a setback for child safety; they plan a ballot initiative to revive similar guardrails. The outcome matters because it highlights the tech industry’s growing leverage over state AI policy and shifts the battleground from legislatures to public campaigns and courts. Technically, AB 1064 would have imposed a preventative standard on chatbots’ behavior toward minors, a concrete safety constraint that regulators elsewhere are considering. California did sign other AI-related laws this year — labels for minors (AB 56), transparency and whistleblower protections for AI developers (SB 53), and a requirement for chatbots to have procedures to prevent suicide/self‑harm content (weakened in SB 243) — while vetoing a broad “No Robo Bosses” employment AI notice law (SB 7). Expect continued fights over definitions like “foreseeably capable,” platform obligations, and whether state rules can coexist with industry self-regulation and national policy.