The CEO of Pinterest, Bill Ready, has urged governments to prohibit social media usage for individuals under the age of 16 in a recent op-ed featured in Time.

He is now among the few prominent CEOs advocating for such a measure, as countries around the globe start to enact or contemplate strategies to curtail children’s online engagement and determine how to authenticate ages. 

Ready expressed that today’s children are “undergoing the most extensive social experiment in history,” having been granted “unrestricted access to social media platforms.” Studies indicate the harm this unregulated access has caused, with present-day youth experiencing higher levels of depression, anxiety, and diminished focus. 

He remarked that social media companies provided “inadequate consideration of the ramifications” their platforms could have on minors and commended Australia’s initiative to ban social media for children, stating that “if tech firms do not put youth safety first, other nations should imitate Australia’s example.”

He highlighted the restrictions and regulations imposed on sectors like tobacco and alcohol, asserting that “such measures can enhance and occasionally preserve lives.” He also mentioned that Pinterest has thrived with Gen Z, even after restricting access to the site’s social functionalities for users below 16 years old.

“When we rationalize our inaction regarding the public’s best interests, tech CEOs mirror the tobacco executives of the 20th century who needed to be coerced and litigated into compliance,” he stated.

Besides Australia, countries such as Malaysia, Spain, and Indonesia have declared social media restrictions. This initiative is igniting discussion within the technology sector, but policymakers show no inclination to yield to the pressure. Legislators in France recently sanctioned a ban for users under 15, while Germany’s ruling faction affirmed its support for a variant of a social media prohibition as well. Various states in the U.S. are also exploring methods to limit minors’ social media access.