EU Moves to Restrict Social Media and Chatbots for Children Under 15

The European Union is preparing to require parental supervision for children under 15 who use social media, certain gaming platforms, and AI chatbots, in a regulatory push that shifts the burden of proof onto technology companies. European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen announced the framework on Wednesday, with the detailed measures, packaged as a “Kids Act,” set to be unveiled on Thursday. The move responds to sustained pressure from member states including France and Greece, which have long argued that Brussels should impose binding restrictions on minors’ access to digital services.

Von der Leyen framed the decision in explicitly political terms, declaring that Europe, not big tech, sets the rules. Under the draft proposal, children under 13 would only be allowed access to these platforms under direct parental supervision, while those aged 13 to 15 could create accounts only with parental control enabled and subject to restrictions such as time limits. The commission is also reversing the evidentiary burden: platforms will have to demonstrate that their services are safe for minors rather than leaving parents to police the risks themselves. As von der Leyen put it, the question is not whether minors access social media, but when and how social media is allowed to access minors.

The restrictions sit within a broader speech in which von der Leyen described artificial intelligence as “the second tipping point of our times,” comparable in scale to climate change. She warned that AI models under development would enable hacking “on a level we never thought possible” and that such capabilities would soon be in the hands of adversaries with different worldviews. To address that threat, she proposed that Brussels cooperate with allies including Canada and the United Kingdom on model evaluation, verification, early warning systems, and AI security.

The dual focus on child safety and AI risk reflects a wider European approach to digital regulation that has increasingly treated platform governance as a matter of public security rather than purely consumer protection. The Kids Act follows the bloc’s earlier flagship legislation on digital markets and content moderation, and it signals that the commission intends to keep tightening the rules rather than waiting for voluntary industry standards to take effect. For platforms operating across Europe, the practical consequences will be significant. Age verification requirements, parental consent mechanisms, and time limits will require changes to product design and compliance infrastructure, and the reversal of the burden of proof means companies will need to produce evidence of safety before their services can be offered to minors.

The international dimension is also notable. By proposing joint work on AI evaluation and security with Canada and the UK, the commission is seeking to build a coalition of like-minded regulators outside the United States and China, the two dominant powers in AI development. Whether that coalition can match the pace of private-sector deployment remains an open question, as does the enforceability of age-based restrictions across a fragmented digital ecosystem where children can access services through multiple devices and jurisdictions.

Still, the political signal is unambiguous. Europe is asserting that the risks of unmediated access to social media and AI systems are significant enough to warrant state intervention, and that the cost of compliance should fall on the platforms. The coming months will show whether the Kids Act translates that ambition into workable rules, and whether other jurisdictions follow Europe’s lead.