S 4855
A bill to require providers of certain artificial intelligence systems to implement child safety by design, parental settings, and independent audits, to prohibit child targeted advertising and the sale or sharing of children's personal information, and for other purposes.
Creates new compliance requirements or restricts common AI uses. Action needed.
TL;DR
Senator John Curtis (R-UT) introduced this bill requiring AI companies whose products are used by minors to build in child safety features, parental controls, and undergo independent audits. It also bans targeted advertising to children and prohibits selling or sharing kids' personal data through AI systems.
How This Might Impact Your Business
AI companies offering consumer-facing products (chatbots, generative AI tools, recommendation engines) likely to be accessed by users under 18 would need to redesign products with child safety as a default setting.
Targeted advertising to minors through AI systems would be banned outright, directly impacting ad-tech firms, social media platforms, and any AI service monetized through personalized ads.
Selling or sharing children's personal information collected through AI systems would be prohibited, affecting data brokers and AI training data pipelines.
Independent third-party audits would become mandatory, creating new recurring compliance costs (likely six figures annually for mid-size AI providers).
Parental control features must be built in, meaning consumer AI products need account-level settings, content filters, and usage monitoring tools.
EdTech, gaming, social media, and consumer generative AI companies face the heaviest compliance burden; B2B AI vendors are likely less affected.
Bill is currently in the Senate Commerce Committee with no scheduled hearing, so timelines for enforcement remain uncertain.
What Should You Do
Inventory which of your AI products are accessible to users under 18 and document current age-gating and data collection practices.
Ask your legal and product teams to assess gaps between current child safety features and likely audit requirements (compare to COPPA and UK Age Appropriate Design Code as a baseline).
If you run AI-driven advertising, identify revenue exposure from a potential ban on targeted ads to minors and model alternative monetization.
Monitor Senate Commerce Committee activity for hearings or markup; assign someone on your policy or government affairs team to track S 4855.
Begin scoping third-party audit vendors now, as demand will spike if this or similar bills advance.
Who It Affects
Sponsors
Status Timeline
committee
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
June 23, 2026
AI-generated analysis for informational purposes only. Not legal advice. Always consult a qualified attorney for legal guidance.
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