California Governor Newsom signs multiple laws to protect workers from AI threats

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed multiple laws on Wednesday, September 30, protecting the state's workers from threats of job loss and workplace surveillance posed by AI. The laws prohibit employers from using biometric data to predict employees' emotional states, require employers to provide written notice to workers when mass layoffs are decided by AI, and prohibit employers from relying on AI to make termination decisions. Newsom also signed an executive order requiring state agencies to continue using the term "artificial intelligence" rather than "super intelligence," after Donald Trump had asked U.S. diplomats to use the latter. Newsom criticized Trump for not advancing comprehensive federal AI regulation, saying states must do more in the absence of federal action, and did not rule out calling a special session of lawmakers to further address the issue. In September, he also signed a law requiring AI chatbot operators to conduct risk assessments before launching, and an executive order requiring state agencies to consult experts to improve industry oversight.