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EU pushes for minimum age to access AI chatbots, social media
The European Parliament has approved a non-binding resolution calling for a standard minimum age of 16 to access social media platforms and AI chatbots across the EU.
Currently, EU countries set their own age limits, with platforms regulated under the bloc’s Digital Services Act.
Lawmakers proposed that children aged 13 to 16 could access these services only with parental consent, and suggested a harmonized minimum age of 13, below which minors would be barred from using such platforms.
The resolution also recommends banning addictive design features, manipulative ad, and gambling-like elements in online services targeting children.
It suggests blocking websites that fail to comply with EU rules, and urges action on AI tools that produce fake or inappropriate content.
The resolution is not legally binding, and any future legislation would require formal proposals and negotiations among EU institutions, a process expected to take years.
🔗 Source: Reuters
🧠 Food for thought
Implications, context, and why it matters.
Several EU countries already set social media ages at 13 to 16, so harmonization may be less disruptive than headlines claim
- EU rules differ. Belgium, France, Germany and Italy set 13 to 15 with different parental consent rules 1.
- A common floor of 13 with a default of 16 plus consent for 13 to 16 mirrors steps already in several member states, not a new regime 2.
- Enforcement is the sticking point. TikTok, Facebook and Snapchat say 13 plus 1. Many under-13s still sign up by typing a birth date 1.
- Testing covered Discord, Instagram, Roblox and YouTube 3. These services rely on self-declaration for age checks, with consent tools easy to bypass or applied after account creation 3.
Privacy-preserving age verification could open a multi-year B2B market
- The European Commission released blueprints in July and October 2025 for privacy-preserving checks using Digital Identity Wallets (government-backed apps for proving identity attributes), with pilots running across Member States 4.
- IEEE 2089.1, ISO 27566-1, and ETSI are aligning on approaches that enable interoperable B2B platforms 5.
- Vendors can serve platforms working toward EU DSA age-assurance timelines by late July 2025 6.
- They can also meet the UK Online Safety Act when Ofcom’s main AV-Day arrives in July 5.
- US state bills are advancing, and Australia has a trial due to report by June 2025 5.
- The scope spans more than social media. Video sites, AI companions, gambling services, and adult content providers face DSA Article 28 age checks 7.
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