Pinterest CEO backs social media ban for children under 16

Pinterest CEO Bill Ready is supporting the global regulatory wave of social media bans targeting underage users.

“As a CEO and a parent, I think we need to be honest: social media as it exists today is not safe for children under 16,” Ready wrote in a LinkedIn post. “We need clearer rules, better tools for parents, and more accountability across the tech ecosystem.”

In an opinion article published by TIME Magazine On Friday, Ready criticized the engagement-focused design of social media platforms and the increasing incorporation of AI chatbots, claiming the practices are having a negative influence on the well-being of children who use these platforms.

He compared social media companies to tobacco executives of the last century who did not act “in the best interest of the public” and “had to be shamed and sued into submission.”

“Our industry has had years to mitigate these harms, but it has failed time and time again. The time for self-regulation has passed, and if technology companies don’t change, then the path should be obvious to policymakers,” Ready wrote. “We need a clear standard: no social media for teens under 16, backed by real enforcement and accountability for mobile phone operating systems and the apps that run on them.”

Australia was the first country to ban under-16s from using social media in a landmark decision that came into effect in December 2025. Since then, a wave of countries have begun to follow in Australia’s footsteps, with lawmakers around the world introducing various social media ban plans. particularly in europe.

The ban is intended to address serious mental health outcomes and the threat of online sexual predators that affect children and adolescents with unrestricted access to social networks.

According to the latest World Happiness Report According to the Wellbeing Research Center at the University of Oxford, high rates of Internet use correlate with lower life satisfaction among young people, with an especially visible effect on girls. Data from Latin America also showed that algorithmically curated content was worse for users’ mental health than communication-focused social media platforms. And social media use in the Middle East and North Africa, where it is among the highest in the world, is correlated with higher stress and more depressive symptoms.

The report, released Thursday, also cites prominent critics of social media who argue that there is “overwhelming evidence” of sextortion and cyberbullying and “compelling evidence” of depression and anxiety in young people linked to social media.

Leading scientists cited in the study also claim that social media use is not “reasonably safe for children and adolescents” and that the “rapid adoption of always-on social media by adolescents in the early 2010s” was “a substantial contributor to the rise in population-level mental illness that emerged in the mid-2010s in many Western nations.”

But critics of social media bans say the measures are ineffective in keeping children off social media, and some claim the age verification requirement could create mass surveillance systems that are ripe for abuse by bad actors.

Pinterest has removed social features for teens, as Ready shared in the article, making every account managed by a user under 16 completely private, with no visibility, messages, likes, or comments from strangers. Still, Generation Z represents more than 50% of Pinterest users, according to the CEO.

“Our experience shows that prioritizing safety and well-being does not alienate young people; it builds trust,” Ready wrote. “The cost of inaction is a generation of young people overwhelmed by anxiety and depression. Right now, adolescence is unfolding within a global social experiment run by technology companies.”

Pinterest specifically supports App Store Liability Lawwhich was recently approved by the House Energy and Commerce Committee and will reach the House floor. The law proposes that app stores institute age verification and link minors’ devices to parents or guardians to require parental consent.

Similar age restrictions at the device level have gained traction in state legislatures also throughout the country.