California signs first-in-nation ban on addictive design for minors, plus AI chatbot disclosure law

round · x · 2026-09-11

• California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Bill 1709, the first law of its kind in the US, barring social media platforms from offering addictive design features to users under 16; autoplay, recommender algorithms and infinite scroll must be off by default.
• He also signed a law requiring AI companies to disclose to young users when they're talking to a chatbot rather than a human, and to restrict dangerous content like self-harm.
• The bills are among more than a dozen digital safety laws signed the same day, following thousands of lawsuits accusing Meta, Snap, TikTok and YouTube of hooking teens, and building on Meta's landmark settlement last month.

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