EU Proposes Ban on Under-13s from Social Media and AI Chatbots

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has proposed banning children under 13 from accessing social media, online games, and AI chatbots in a bid to curb addictive features and protect young people online.

The plan, unveiled during her annual State of the European Union speech in Strasbourg on Wednesday, would bar children under 13 from accessing these platforms altogether. However, those aged 13-15 would be granted 'mini accounts' that are chaperoned by a guardian, rather than being barred outright.

Von der Leyen emphasized that this move is not intended to undermine the power of Big Tech but rather to regulate its impact on society, citing concerns over addictive features and extreme content. She noted that girls have their photos used for AI-generated sexualized images, which highlights the need for greater oversight.

The proposal has been met with support from some EU lawmakers, including Manfred Weber, head of the largest group in the European Parliament, who suggested going further by letting citizens switch off social media algorithms entirely. However, it is unclear how this would be implemented and what implications it would have for companies such as Meta, Alphabet's Google, TikTok owner ByteDance, and AI chatbot developers like OpenAI and Character.AI.

The plan has also sparked concern over potential trade tensions with the US, particularly given President Donald Trump's past criticism of EU tech rules. The proposal is set to be voted on by the EU's 27 member states, and its success remains uncertain at this stage.