Are Teen Chatbots D.O.A. in 2027? All Eyes Are on California's SB 1119

Webinaire | September.08.2026 | 1pm - 2pm (Central Standard Time)

Virtual

The California legislature is inching toward passing SB 1119, a first-of-a-kind bill designed to reshape the regulatory landscape for AI companion chatbots. The ripple effects are likely to flow to other states, and may be an indication of what’s to come for AI and youth safety legislation and regulation more broadly.

Join Orrick partners Nicole Lopez, Jeremy Kudon, Rob McKenna and Chris Cariello for a conversation grounded in their collective expertise on youth online safety strategic issues, including shaping and advocating on state legislation, engaging with state Attorneys General and global regulators, arguing appeals, and advising businesses on proactive strategies to see around corners. We’ll discuss what California’s developments mean for your business and how innovators and investors alike can think about what’s coming next:

Does this impact you? What companies, products and tech are NOT in the scope of this new law?
How does SB 1119 build on and depart from California’s broader teen online safety policy approach?
How does SB 1119 fit in what has quickly become a patchwork of youth chatbot laws across the states, and where does it head in 2027?
What’s likely to follow, in terms of AG activity – and in the courtroom?
For chatbots and beyond, what’s next in how states will shape platform safety, youth access to AI, and AI regulation more broadly?

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Contacts

Nicole Lopez Partner, Online Safety, Public Policy

San Francisco

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D:+1 415 773 5452
E: [email protected]

Practice:

Online Safety
Public Policy
State Attorneys General Investigations & Enforcement
State Legislative & Regulatory

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Nicole Lopez Partner

San Francisco

Nicole served for almost 4 years at Meta Platforms as Global Director of Youth Safety Policy and as lead for Global Youth Litigation Strategy. She has deep experience working with innovators to develop and scale policy strategies and tech solutions to create spaces for positive online experiences that protect kids and teens while enabling responsible innovation.

Her work as product, policy and litigation strategy counsel has been instrumental in helping organizations anticipate and manage youth online safety risk in a rapidly evolving technology, regulatory and legislative landscape. For example, she helped Meta develop and execute strategy, and led AG engagements, both in house and at Orrick, in connection with the company's recent historic settlement with the State Attorneys General to keep teens safe.

Having served as product counsel and as a Trust & Safety executive at tech companies at all stages, Nicole brings unmatched credibility and insight to interactions with regulators. She has presented to State Attorneys General and to the European Commission on both proactive product developments and contentious issues, including investigations and enforcement matters. She is an advocate for clients, constantly looking to drive alignment on effective policy and balanced resolutions. She has testified extensively before state legislative bodies and regulators, and led engagements with policymakers in the U.S., EU, Middle East and Asia, on critical issues impacting teens’ and children’s safety online.

A former California state prosecutor with 8 years of experience prosecuting child abuse and child exploitation cases – and with over 50 jury and bench trials under her belt – Nicole draws on her courtroom skills in service of her advocacy work opposite lawmakers and regulators, as well as in advising clients on litigation strategy.

Nicole frequently speaks at industry events, engaging with policymakers, parents and teens, technology leaders and subject-matter experts to drive forward-thinking solutions.

Jeremy Kudon Partner, State Legislative & Regulatory, Gaming & Gambling

New York

E[email protected]

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E: [email protected]

Practice:

Technology & Innovation Sector
State Legislative & Regulatory
Gaming & Gambling
Public Policy
Strategic Advisory & Government Enforcement (SAGE)

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Jeremy Kudon Partner

New York

Whether you’re a disruptive tech company, a global investor, or a legacy brand under siege, Jeremy’s team builds and runs campaigns that change laws, open markets, and protect billions in enterprise value.

Their work has been profiled by The New York Times and BU's The Record and featured on The Daily, Michael Lewis’s Against the Rules, and Crooked Media’s What a Day podcasts.

They are on the frontlines of the national battles over AI frontier model regulation, clean energy, sports betting, and the future of communication services—earning the trust of elected officials and ensuring clients are in the room where it matters on their most important issues.

This isn’t government affairs. It’s the power to make order out of the chaos of 50 state legislatures and leverage it to your advantage.

Rob McKenna Partner, Public Policy, Cyber, Privacy & Data Innovation

Seattle; Washington, D.C.

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D:+1 206 839 4415
E: [email protected]

Practice:

Technology & Innovation Sector
Public Policy
Cyber, Privacy & Data Innovation
State Attorneys General Investigations & Enforcement
Strategic Advisory & Government Enforcement (SAGE)

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Rob McKenna Partner

Seattle; Washington, D.C.

A former Washington State Attorney General and President of the National Association of Attorneys General, Rob is accomplished in all areas of public policy, appellate law and investigations. He is a Chambers USA Band 1 Partner in Government Relations: State Attorneys General.

Rob represents a wide range of technology, energy, finance and other companies in matters involving cyber security, data privacy, litigation, appellate litigation, regulatory proceedings, state attorney general investigations and legislative issues. His experience, stature and proficiency add essential capabilities for clients seeking coordinated policy advocacy, regulatory compliance and litigation strategies in state capitols across the country and in Washington, D.C., where he has testified before Congress and assisted clients who have been called to testify before Congressional committees. While at Orrick, Rob has represented clients in both state and federal court, typically in cases centered on constitutional questions.

Rob served two terms as Attorney General of Washington, from 2005 to 2013. He successfully argued three cases before the U.S. Supreme Court and helped negotiate three of the largest consumer protection settlements in national history, all involving mortgage lending and servicing. He is a recognized leader in the development of data protection and privacy regulation. Rob was the first state Attorney General to build a computer forensics lab to collect evidence of Internet fraud and passed one of the nation's first anti-spyware laws.

Rob served as President of the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) from 2011–12 where he co-launched the NAAG Intellectual Property Task Force to advance the national fight against counterfeiting and piracy. While serving as NAAG President, he created and led a national initiative to combat human trafficking which continues to this day. The NAAG human trafficking summit he hosted in Seattle in 2012 led AGs to launch state-level initiatives around the country. His fellow attorneys general honored him in 2011 with the Kelley-Wyman Award for “Outstanding Attorney General” in America.

Christopher J. Cariello Partner, Supreme Court & Appellate, Litigation & IP

New York

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D:+1 212 506 3778
E: [email protected]

Practice:

Supreme Court & Appellate
Litigation & IP

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Christopher J. Cariello Partner

New York

Chris has served as appellate counsel to tech titans and telecommunications giants in high-stakes copyright litigation, innovators facing billion-dollar trade secret verdicts, and national retailers with key trademarks on the line. He has authored dozens of briefs in the federal courts of appeals and U.S. Supreme Court. And he has argued and won key victories in precedent setting cases applying copyright secondary liability doctrines, the DMCA, and the Lanham Act.

Chris is most passionate about the IP issues confronting innovators—and he joins the battle wherever and whenever it is taking place. He recently led briefing and strategy in a generational copyright win in the Supreme Court, Cox Communications v. Sony Entertainment, while working the front lines at the district court level in numerous challenges to generative AI technology. He is a consummate team player when partnering with trial teams to craft winning legal strategies and themes, brief dispositive motions, win key legal and evidentiary rulings at trial, and construct a record with an eye towards appeal. And Chris regularly provides strategic counseling to clients from startups to leading public companies on product design, pre-complaint strategy, or regulatory compliance issues in the copyright and AI space.

Chris also has a wealth of experience in class action defense in both trial and appellate courts, including several appellate victories defending the denial of class certification. He also maintains a generalist appellate practice, representing clients in white collar criminal defense, founder disputes, contract actions, bankruptcy, and constitutional law.