UK to Ban Social Media for Under-16s Starting Next Year

Summary

Author Beeban Kidron discusses her book 'Users' and the case for government intervention to regulate big tech's addictive product design, particularly for children. She addresses the UK's upcoming ban on social media for under-16s, enforcement responsibility falling on tech companies, and the cultural shift needed to protect kids. The conversation also touches on AI chatbots as the next frontier of this regulatory battle, framing the moment as big tech's 'tobacco moment' where courts will examine whether products are fit for human consumption.

• Discussion of the UK ban on social media for under-16s and the government's role in regulating product design
• Enforcement will rely on tech companies being fined and disrupted if they fail to keep children off platforms
• Cultural argument that society has normalized harmful content for children and the ban aims to change that norm
• AI chatbots represent the next frontier for child protection and regulation
• Comparison of the current period to the tobacco industry's litigation era (big tech's 'tobacco moment')
• Debate centers on whether democratic societies will impose rules or accept big tech's terms and conditions