The RAISE Act vs. SB 53: A Tale of Two Frontier AI Laws

On December 19, New York Governor Hochul (D) signed the Responsible AI Safety and Education (RAISE) Act, ending months of uncertainty after the bill passed the legislature in June and making New York the second state to enact a statute specifically focused on frontier artificial intelligence (AI) safety and transparency. Sponsored by Assemblymember Bores (D) and Senator Gounardes (D), the law closely follows California’s enactment of SB 53 in late September, requiring advanced AI developers to publish governance frameworks and transparency reports, and establishing mechanisms for reporting critical safety incidents. As they moved through their respective legislatures, the RAISE Act and SB 53 shared a focus on transparency and catastrophic risk mitigation but diverged in scope, structure, and enforcement–raising concerns about a compliance patchwork for nationally operating developers.

The New York Governor’s chapter amendments ultimately narrowed those differences, revising the final version of the RAISE Act to more closely align with California’s SB 53, with conforming changes expected to be formally adopted by the Legislature in January. Even so, the two laws are not identical, and the remaining distinctions may be notable for frontier developers navigating compliance in both the Golden and the Empire State.

Understanding the RAISE Act, and how it aligns with and diverges from California’s SB 53, offers a useful lens into how states are approaching frontier AI safety and transparency and where policymaking may be headed in 2026.