State lawmakers considering new rules for AI chatbots are leaning heavily on input from Google and other major technology companies as they race to regulate a fast-moving industry. The involvement highlights the outsized role technology firms play in shaping the very rules meant to govern them, a dynamic that has drawn criticism from consumer advocates.

Proposed state rules touch on issues including chatbot safety disclosures, protections for minors, and liability when an AI system provides harmful or false information. With Congress yet to pass comprehensive federal AI legislation, states have become the primary venue for regulatory experimentation.

Industry representatives argue their technical input helps lawmakers avoid unworkable rules, while critics counter that companies with a direct financial stake should not be the primary authors of their own regulation.