California Bans Addictive Social Media Features for Kids Under 16

California has introduced sweeping new rules aimed at protecting children from technology-related risks. Under the new laws, social media platforms will be restricted from exposing users under 16 to addictive features such as infinite scrolling and algorithmically driven autoplay. California has also banned the manufacture and sale of AI companion chatbots embedded in toys for the next four years.

The legislation also introduces stronger requirements for parental controls, safety measures, risk assessments and children's online privacy. The new rules have drawn criticism from the Electronic Frontier Foundation, which argues that they could create unnecessary barriers to children's internet access and raise concerns about privacy and freedom of expression.

In this video, we explain what California's new rules mean for children, social media platforms, AI-powered toys and the future of online safety.