Sacramento – September 20, 2026 -- California Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order accelerating implementation of SB 813, the Fathom-sponsored law that established the nation's first comprehensive framework for independent verification organizations (IVOs) overseeing frontier AI systems.
California moves IVO designation deadline up by eight months
The executive order shifts the state's deadline to finalize IVO designation criteria from January 2028 to May 2027. SB 813 already created the legal structure for IVOs, third-party bodies tasked with independently assessing AI labs' safety claims.
Experts must deliver feasibility recommendations by November 16
The order convenes national experts to recommend, by November 16, answers to three technical feasibility questions: whether IVOs should be embedded onsite inside frontier labs, whether they should independently verify the safety filings labs already submit to California under SB 53, and whether they should continuously verify that a model "kill switch", an emergency shutoff mechanism, functions as intended.
SB 813 separates IVO oversight from both government and labs
Under SB 813, the state government sets and enforces the criteria for IVO qualification and retains authority to revoke that designation. A separate, expert-staffed body, not the IVOs or the labs themselves, sets the technical standards IVOs are assessed against. IVO findings must be made public so regulators, researchers and the public can independently verify the results.
"Fathom has long believed that an ecosystem of transparent, effective, and independent verification organizations will be a central pillar of making sure AI is safe for the world," said Andrew Freedman, Fathom CEO and Co-Founder. "Today we're seeing California turn what was once a policy idea into a real-life regulatory structure to keep people safe as this technology advances, and we're excited to continue this work not just in California but with policymakers across the country."