California discloses six high-risk AI systems after reporting zero previously
California state agencies reported using zero high-risk AI systems in 2025 despite documented use of multiple systems. In June 2026, the state disclosed it is currently using six high-risk automated systems for tasks including predicting prisoner recidivism, evaluating unemployment fraud claims, and detecting AI-generated student assignments.
What happened
California reported to its technology department one year ago that state agencies were using zero high-risk automated decision systems, despite documented evidence of several systems in use.
In a June 2026 report, the state disclosed it is currently using six high-risk AI-like systems. These systems include one to predict whether incarcerated people will re-offend, one to evaluate whether unemployment claims are fraudulent, one to remotely administer exams for California State University students, and one to detect when college students use generative AI to write assignments.
The state corrections department had been using COMPAS to assign recidivism scores to inmates for at least a decade. The employment department used a fraud detection system that paused benefits for 600,000 Californians between Christmas and New Years in 2020.
Reported impact
Civil rights, privacy, and civil liberties groups have raised concerns about harms from AI-like systems, noting that numerous such systems have been shown to produce results biased against marginalized groups, including those used for high-stakes testing, predicting recidivism, and detecting AI-generated texts.
Index analysis
The state's initial report of zero high-risk systems contradicted documented examples of automated decision systems in use across corrections and employment agencies.
The expanded disclosure in 2026 was prompted by the state technology department evaluating responses more thoroughly, revealing systems that had been in operation for several years.
Governance controls
California's 2023 law mandates that state agencies annually disclose their use of high-risk automated decision systems, defined as systems used to assist or replace human discretionary decisions with legal or similarly significant effects on housing, education, employment, credit, health care, and criminal justice.
The law was established in response to advocacy by civil rights, privacy, and civil liberties groups concerned about AI system harms.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.