New California social media laws target addictive features

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🗞️ Driving the news: California Governor Gavin Newsom signed 13 laws Thursday restricting features deemed psychologically exploitative for users under 16, including infinite scrolling, algorithmic recommendations and autoplay designed to encourage compulsive use
• Others require parental controls for AI companion chatbots, ban toys containing AI chatbots, and impose criminal sanctions for AI-generated content depicting minors in sexual conduct

🔭 The context: Newsom argues the approach is better targeted than Australia's under-16 social media ban because it addresses the engineering behind addictive use rather than age alone; reports suggest the Australian ban has not prevented access
• The EU is weighing its own limits, ranging from restrictions for under-13s to a broader under-15 ban that France supports
• Meta said it is committed to safe experiences for teens with proper guardrails in place

🌍 Why it matters for corporate governance and sustainability: The laws regulate product design directly rather than requiring disclosure or age verification, setting a precedent that engagement-maximising architecture is itself the regulated harm
• For companies whose revenue depends on that architecture, this converts a reputational and litigation exposure into a compliance obligation in a major market, the kind of social-pillar risk that ESG frameworks have struggled to price

⏭️ What's next: EU proposals remain under consideration, with Commission President Ursula von der Leyen saying Thursday that addictive social media design need not be accepted
• California joins several US states tightening rules on children's online safety

💬 One quote: "We want our children — and every California kid — to grow up in a world where technology supports their wellbeing, rather than exploits their vulnerabilities" — Gavin Newsom, Governor of California.

📈 One stat: 13 new laws signed, with restrictions applying to users under 16

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