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TL;DR
A French expert commission delivered a report to President Emmanuel Macron’s office on November 10, recommending that consumer chatbots and AI companions be evaluated before entering the European market and checked regularly afterward. Its 18 recommendations, including safeguards for minors and restrictions on manipulative design and undisclosed advertising, are proposals—not current law.
A French expert commission has urged the government to require consumer AI chatbots and companions to pass a safety evaluation before entering the European market, with regular checks after launch. The commission delivered its report, titled Protect without preventing: vulnerabilities in the age of generative AI, to the Élysée on November 10; its 18 recommendations are proposals, not law.
The central recommendation is to assess whether consumer AI systems “neither exploit nor aggravate the vulnerabilities of their users” before they are marketed in Europe. The report also proposes recurring evaluations, for example every 12 to 24 months, after a substantial model change, or when an alert is raised. If a provider fails an assessment, the report says withdrawal from the market could be considered.
The proposed rules cover consumer chatbots, AI companions and AI-enabled toys, including assistants built into social media platforms. The Élysée says the core proposal is not aimed at professional systems. Other recommendations address design that flatters users or makes AI appear human, protections for minors, undisclosed advertising, and users’ rights over inferences chatbots make about them. The commission marked nine of its 18 recommendations as priorities.
The report was prepared by the “Generative AI and Vulnerabilities” expert commission, set up by France’s advisory council on AI and digital technology, CIANum. The Élysée says nine multidisciplinary, independent experts worked on it, led by AI researcher Serena Villata and psychiatrists Raphaël Gaillard and Amine Benyamina. The commission says it held 55 hearings over four months with health professionals, researchers, companies, regulators and child-protection groups. Its full report runs to 193 pages.
AI chatbots before launch What French experts want tested
A French expert commission proposed safety checks for consumer AI before launch and after release. Its recommendations are proposals, not current law.
Which systems are in scope?
The central proposal focuses on consumer-facing AI.
Consumer assistants
Assess systems before they enter the European market, including assistants built into social media.
Personal AI
The proposals cover AI companions and AI-enabled toys. The core proposal does not target professional systems.
How oversight could work
The commission proposes checks before launch and again when risks or major changes arise.
Evaluate whether a system exploits or worsens users’ vulnerabilities.
Repeat evaluations, for example every 12 to 24 months, after a substantial model change, or when an alert is raised.
The report says market withdrawal could be considered if a provider fails an assessment.
Protections the report proposes
Recommendations address user wellbeing, minors and commercial influence.
- Limit manipulative design that flatters users or makes AI seem human.
- Label commercial influence in AI answers and prohibit undisclosed advertising.
- Protect users’ rights over inferences chatbots make about them.
- Apply protective measures for all users or use robust age verification.
- Consider default time limits, no persistent memory by default and a visible stop button.
- Keep human-like features off unless a parent agrees.
A proposal awaiting action
Most recommendations would require European Union action.
How the proposals could change chatbot access
The recommendations would shift oversight toward checking risks before a product reaches consumers, rather than relying only on general rules or responding after problems arise. If adopted, they could affect how AI providers test, update and market assistants across Europe, and could give regulators grounds to require changes or consider removing a system from the market.
The proposed safeguards also address risks beyond technical accuracy. The commission identifies emotional dependence, weakened independent decision-making and online abuse, including sexual deepfakes, among its concerns. For users, the debate is about what protections should apply when a chatbot is designed to feel personal, retains conversation history, or makes sensitive guesses about someone. The report’s recommendations do not establish that any specific product has caused harm; they set out concerns and proposed rules.
Advertising is another part of the policy question. The commission wants commercial influence in AI answers to be labeled and undisclosed influence prohibited. That proposal could matter as assistants develop ways to earn revenue, but the report does not itself ban any existing advertising format. Its proposals would need political and legislative action before they could be enforced.
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A French proposal aimed at EU rules
Most recommendations would require action at the European Union level, according to the source report. The commission presents them as input for France’s position on updates to the EU AI Act and on other European legislation still under negotiation. The report therefore sets out a policy direction, rather than a ready-to-enforce French regulatory regime.
The commission’s argument is that consumer conversational AI reaches users without a dedicated pre-launch assessment of the kind it proposes. Its report frames the issue as a tension between rapid adoption and limited trust. Figures cited in the report include 33 million unique users of generative AI in France at the start of 2026, according to an Élysée summary, and daily use among 26% of French 12- to 17-year-olds, according to the 2026 digital barometer cited by the commission.
The report also cites a YouGov survey for Interface in which 92% of teenagers said they spend more time on generative AI apps than they would like. These figures come from different sources and surveys, so they describe separate measures rather than a single trend or common comparison. The commission uses them to illustrate the scale of use and its concerns about user vulnerability.
“The proposal is a “paradigm shift.””
— The Élysée
No law or adoption timetable yet
The commission’s report is advisory, not binding. As of November 11, the source material reports no bill and no timetable for turning the proposals into law. It is also not clear which recommendations the French government will endorse, whether it will seek all of them at EU level, or how EU institutions and other member states will respond.
Several details remain open, including who would conduct the proposed evaluations, what evidence would count as a failure, how often checks would be required in practice, and what process would apply before a system could be withdrawn. The report gives 12 to 24 months as an example interval, not a confirmed schedule. The source material also does not specify how age verification, user rights over inferred information, or parental consent for human-like features would work in final rules.
Government and EU response awaited
The next step is a policy decision by the French government on whether to use the report’s recommendations in its work on EU AI Act updates and other legislation under negotiation. The report itself does not set a date for that decision. Any binding requirements would depend on governments and EU lawmakers agreeing on legal text and implementation arrangements.
Until then, the recommendations should be read as proposals for future oversight, not as rules already imposed on providers. Further developments to watch include a formal French position, draft legislation or amendments, and decisions on which consumer systems would fall within any assessment regime.
Key Questions
What did the French commission recommend?
It recommended pre-launch evaluations for consumer AI assistants, regular checks after release, and possible market withdrawal if a system fails an assessment. Its 18 proposals also address minors, manipulative design and undisclosed commercial influence.
Are the recommendations already law?
No. The report is advisory. As of November 11, the source material reports no bill or timetable for implementation.
Which AI products would be covered?
The central proposal concerns consumer chatbots and AI companions, including systems built into social media platforms. The report also includes recommendations concerning AI-enabled toys. The Élysée says the core proposal does not target professional systems.
What protections does the report propose for minors?
Providers serving minors would have to apply protective measures for all users or use robust age verification. Suggested measures include conversation time limits by default, no persistent memory by default, a visible stop button and human-like features switched off unless a parent agrees.
What happens next?
The French government may decide whether to bring the recommendations into discussions on EU rules. No formal response or legislative schedule is given in the source material.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
