New York City Council is taking aim at artificial intelligence \u2014 introducing a slate of bills Friday that would mandate \u201ckill switches,\u201d require third-party safety validation, and pay cash rewards to whistleblowers, the New York Post reported.<\/p>\n
Council Speaker Julie Menin said the city is \u201cfast becoming the technology and AI capital of the world\u201d and therefore has \u201can even greater responsibility\u201d to protect New Yorkers. The package heads to a rare council-wide hearing Oct. 5; Menin sent letters inviting the heads of Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, SpaceX, and Meta.<\/p>\n
Proposals would bar marketing, selling, or deploying AI systems in the five boroughs without outside expert validation of safety claims, and require a \u201chuman override that can shut down the system\u201d for AI tools used in the city \u2014 with a $25,000 fine per offense. A separate bill would create what the council called a first-in-the-nation approach: whistleblowers rewarded from fines collected from violators they help catch.<\/p>\n
The push follows Gov. Kathy Hochul\u2019s plan for AI firms to register in a state portal starting in November and report critical safety incidents within 72 hours. A council spokesperson said the bills target companies with offices in New York and are enforceable by the city.<\/p>\n