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Are You Ready for the New AI Laws in 2026?

Ready for the New AI Laws

Let’s start with a familiar scene. Your employees are using generative AI.A lot. Quietly. Creatively. Sometimes brilliantly. Sometimes…not so much.


Your AI policies look great. Your leadership decks say “Responsible AI” in bold font. Everyone feels optimistic. Meanwhile, California and New York are sharpening their pencils.

Beginning in 2026, new California AI laws and New York Local Law 144 move AI governance from good intentions to legal obligations. These laws are not about what your AI could do.


They’re about what your people actually do with AI under stress, deadlines, and pressure.

And here’s the plot twist no one likes:


MIT studies show 95% of GenAI projects are failing. Let that sink in. Only 5% succeed.

And when AI goes wrong, which is 95% of the time, regulators don’t sue the policy.

They sue the company. They name executives. They subpoena processes. They ask uncomfortable questions.


What the laws demand


  • California AI laws require transparency, safeguards, accountability, and documented controls around AI behavior. Not just policies. Evidence.

  • NY144 governs automated decision tools in recruiting and employment. Bias. Explainability. Oversight. Proof.

  • Both laws apply beyond state borders. If you serve customers or candidates in CA or NY, you are in scope.


What actually creates risk


Not the AI model. The humans using it.


  • Stress leads to shortcuts

  • Misplaced trust leads to overreliance

  • Pressure leads to misuse

  • Misuse leads to bias, disclosure failures, IP leaks, and bad decisions


That’s how fines happen, lawsuits start, and brands get dumped.


Meanwhile, executives face a paradox:

  • Lock AI down and lose competitiveness

  • Let it run wild and invite regulators


This is where NIST AI RMF, ISO 42001, and governance frameworks matter. But frameworks alone don’t measure human behavior. They assume it. Unfortunately, assumptions are expensive.


The Plot Twist That Actually Works


Here is the good news. And yes, you can now let our your breath.

Organizations that win in 2026 will not be the ones with the longest AI policy PDFs. They will be the ones who measured human risk early, fixed it intelligently, and empowered employees safely.


This is how the HermanScience Generative AI Readiness and Risk Assessment and SaaS platform can keep you out of court.


It does three things most programs and platforms do not:


  1. Measures the human element - The neuroscience based CQI Assessment identifies stress, trust, and misuse risk before they become incidents. You can’t govern what you can’t see.

  2. Maps directly to the laws and frameworks - California AI laws. NY144. NIST 600-1. ISO 42001. Gartner TRiSM. One assessment. One defensible view of readiness. One detailed plan for safe AI adoption.

  3. Enables people instead of scaring them - With HermanLearn GenAI Training, escape room gamification, and applied learning science, employees learn how to use AI safely without fear, confusion, or guesswork.


The result:

  • Lower legal exposure

  • Stronger audit readiness

  • Reduced misuse risk

  • Faster adoption with guardrails

  • Clarity on which LLMs to use, where, and how

  • Trained employees who feel trusted instead of trapped


While other agencies, consultancies, or experts can offer assessments, expertise, policies, or training, they can’t offer everything needed based on proven neuroscience and industry frameworks. Perhaps most important for CEOs and COOs: You stay competitive without becoming a cautionary tale. Because nothing says “missed the plot” like explaining to a regulator that your AI “messed up.”


Final Thought


Ready for the New AI Laws? 2026 is here. Regulators aren’t patient, and AI won’t wait for committees. Assess now. Fix early. Empower safely before it’s too late.

 
 
 

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