New York Opens AI Registration Portal, Sets 2027 Deadline

New York now requires frontier AI developers with more than $500 million in annual revenue to register with the state by January 1, 2027, under penalties reaching $1 million for a first violation and $3 million for repeat offenses. Governor Kathy Hochul opened the registration portal Tuesday under the Responsible AI Safety and Education (RAISE) Act, which takes effect at the start of 2027 and directly applies to companies like OpenAI and Anthropic.

The law establishes the Office of Digital Innovation, Governance, Integrity, and Trust (DIGIT) within the Department of Financial Services to oversee compliance. The state can also bring enforcement actions against companies that fail to register, though a spokesperson declined to provide specifics.

"Tech moguls tell us that their vision for AI is inevitable," Hochul said at a press briefing Tuesday. "They tell us get on board or get left behind… That any collateral damage is worth it as long as we win the race to the AI cliff."

What must developers actually do?

The RAISE Act splits obligations between all frontier AI developers operating in New York and a heavier tier for large ones:

• Registration: Large frontier developers must register through the RAISE Portal by January 1, 2027.
• Safety frameworks: Starting January 2027, large developers must publish safety frameworks on their websites.
• Incident reporting: Critical safety incidents must reach DIGIT within 72 hours.
• Transparency reports: All frontier developers must publish model transparency reports.
• Quarterly assessments: Large developers must file quarterly catastrophic-risk assessments with DIGIT.
• Disclosure statements: Large developers must submit them at least every other year starting January 1, 2027.

DIGIT will publish an annual report summarizing incident reports, observations on frontier model safety, and recommended changes to the law. The public can file suspected critical safety incident reports with the office as well.

Who will test the models?

Hochul simultaneously launched the New York Center for AI Responsibility and Research (NYCAIRR) at Binghamton University, backed by the $500 million Empire AI computing initiative. The center will independently evaluate advanced AI systems for safety and security, coordinate with DIGIT to review companies' published safety frameworks, and build measurement tools and standards for increasingly powerful models.

Interim co-directors Greg Morrisett, dean of Cornell Tech, and Jeannette Wing, executive vice president for research at Columbia University, will lead a network of more than 80 researchers across New York institutions. The center was first announced in January with a $30 million philanthropic gift led by Bloomberg LP co-founder and Binghamton alumnus Tom Secunda, plus a $25 million research investment from SUNY and state operating capital.

"The stakes are too high to simply take AI companies at their word," Hochul said.

How does New York compare with other states?

New York's law joins a growing patchwork of state AI rules. California's SB 53, effective January 2026, requires frontier labs to publish safety frameworks, establish whistleblower protections, and report critical safety incidents within 15 days — five times New York's 72-hour window. Illinois' SB 315, taking effect January 2027, adds independent safety compliance audits.

New York has stacked its own additional measures on top. A 2025 law requires AI companion operators to regularly notify users they're talking to a bot and to detect suicidal ideation. An October 2026 chatbot safety law for minors restricts deceptive human-like interactions, emotionally manipulative responses, and encouragement of self-harm or disordered eating, effective June 1, 2027.

Why states are moving now

Hochul framed the package as filling a federal vacuum. "While the federal government fails to act, New York is leading the way on AI safety and holding big tech accountable," she said. The Trump administration, she argued, "has failed to take the dangers of AI seriously — literally turning a blind eye while lining their pockets with big tech dollars."

Attorney General Letitia James, who championed the RAISE Act, said her office "will always enforce the law and do everything in our power to keep New Yorkers safe." State Senator Andrew Gounardes, the bill's sponsor, said "AI companies are playing Russian Roulette with humanity's future."

The registration portal is open now. Large developers have until January 1, 2027, to register and start publishing safety frameworks, while NYCAIRR coordinates with DIGIT on reviews and independent evaluations. Hochul said she'll explore ways to build on the RAISE Act in coming months — and whether the testing center can produce evidence beyond companies' own disclosures will be the practical test of the state's approach.