What bans social media for under-16s in Canada?

Canada’s “Safe Social Media Act”\n\nCanada has introduced a bill that would restrict social media access for children under 16 and set new safety expectations for AI chatbot services. The measure is positioned as an online-safety intervention aimed at both child protection and the behavior standards of AI systems that interact with the public.\n\n### What the bill would do\n\n- Ban social media for children under 16 (a cutoff at age 16 is explicitly cited).\n- Impose safety standards on AI chatbot services, treating them as part of the broader online risk landscape rather than as a purely separate AI policy issue.\n\n### Why it matters\n\nThe bill reflects a growing pattern in Western online-safety regulation: governments are increasingly targeting the age-appropriateness of platform access while also looking at AI tools that mediate content and interactions. By combining an underage access restriction with AI chatbot safety requirements, Canada is effectively tying together two previously distinct policy arenas—youth online behavior and AI governance.\n\nIt also signals that AI safety policy is moving from voluntary guidelines and private company controls toward regulatory baseline requirements. If enacted, the act would likely force platforms and AI chatbot providers to implement age gating and safety/compliance processes at scale, with potential implications for product design, moderation workflows, and how chatbot behavior is validated.\n\n### International context\n\nThe update comes as other countries are pursuing similar under-16 social media restrictions and as policymakers worldwide continue to expand AI oversight—suggesting Canada is joining a wider regulatory wave rather than acting alone.