No Social Media Under 16. One Tech CEO Says It Out Loud While the Rest Stay Silent

Pinterest CEO Bill Ready has made a bold public stand against his own industry, calling on governments worldwide to ban social media for all users under the age of 16. Ready amplified the call both in a Time magazine op-ed and through his LinkedIn page, taking his message directly to the business community where fellow tech leaders could not ignore it.

In his op-ed, Ready did not mince words, declaring that social media "as configured today is not safe for young people under 16" and has been "designed to maximize view time, keeping kids glued to a screen with little regard for their well-being." He drew a sharp comparison to the tobacco industry, warning that tech CEOs who resist action "sound like 20th century tobacco executives who had to be shamed and sued into submission."​

Ready cited Australia's under-16 social media ban as the global benchmark and criticised fellow tech CEOs who dismissed it as "premature and performative." Pinterest itself has already walked the talk. After making all accounts under 16 fully private and removing social features for teens, Gen Z grew to represent over 50% of its total user base, proving safety and growth can coexist.

With a Los Angeles courtroom currently hearing allegations that Google and Meta fuelled a teen mental health crisis, Ready's call lands at a moment of maximum pressure on the entire industry.