Bill · H.R. 9948· House(119-HR-9948)
Addictive Design Act of 2026
- Introduced
- 7/27/2026
- Last activity
- 7/27/2026 — Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Education and Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
- Sponsored by
- Becca Balint
- Cosponsors
- - 4 - 0
- Introduced
- In Committee
What this bill would do
The Addictive Design Act of 2026 aims to protect youth from the mental health risks associated with AI chatbots. It directs the President to establish an interagency task force to review the impact of addictive design features and provide recommendations. The bill also mandates research and outreach grant programs through the Secretary of Health and Human Services. Additionally, the legislation prohibits covered entities from making AI chatbots with addictive design features available to youth. To support research, the bill requires entities to provide necessary data to higher education institutions.
Yes· 3 of 4
Would children be better off under this?+8
The bill specifically targets the protection of youth from addictive AI design features that impact mental health.
Does this give people more protection from unfair business practices?+7
The bill prohibits entities from providing youth with AI chatbots that use addictive design features.
Does this put more money into scientific research?+6
The bill authorizes $3,000,000 for research grants to institutions of higher education regarding AI and youth mental health.
The opposite
No question was scored the opposite.
Who it would affect, and how
Potential Positive Impacts for People
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Mitigating Mental Health Risks: The establishment of an interagency task force aims to review and reduce the impact of addictive design features on youth mental health (Section 3(a)).
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Increased Research Knowledge: Through the Research Grant Program, institutions of higher education will conduct projects to better understand how AI chatbots affect the mental health of young people (Section 4(a)).
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Empowering Parents and Teachers: The Outreach Grant Program will provide training and information to parents, legal guardians, and teachers to help them identify and respond to warning signs of mental health risks in youth (Section 4(b)).
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Prohibition of Harmful Features: The bill bans covered entities from providing youth with AI chatbots that utilize addictive design features, such as typing bubbles or avatars (Section 6(a) and Section 7(1)).
Potential Negative Impacts for People
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Data Handling Burdens: Institutions of higher education receiving research grants must demonstrate an ability to safely store any data received during their projects (Section 4(a)(2)).
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Compliance Requirements for Age Verification: If a company uses age verification technology to comply with the bill, they are restricted to collecting only strictly necessary data and must delete it within 24 hours (Section 6(b)).
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Financial Penalties for Entities: Covered entities face significant civil penalties of up to $10,000,000 for failing to provide requested data to researchers (Section 5(c)(1)) and $5,000 for violating the prohibition on addictive design features or age verification rules (Section 6(c)(1)).
Groups and Interests Ranking
Every group the model scored this bill for, from -10 to +10. Hover a score for the reason it gave.
- Demographic And Interest Groups
- Good For Children+8
- Economy And Finance
- Improves Consumer Protection+7
- Education And Technology
- Increases Scientific Research Funding+6
- Healthcare
- Improves Mental Health Access+5
- 9/2/2026
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- 7/27/2026
- Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Education and Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
- 3 Cosponsors added.
- Introduced in House
Christopher DeluzioDemocrat · Pennsylvania
Adelita GrijalvaDemocrat · Arizona
Thomas SuozziDemocrat · New York
Bonnie Watson ColemanDemocrat · New Jersey