Snapchat boss says firm is 'willing to implement' daily time limits for teens
Snap CEO Evan Spiegel told the BBC the company would consider daily usage time limits for teenagers, following pressure from Meta to adopt similar industry standards. Snap also unveiled new AI-powered Specs glasses.
Snap chief executive Evan Spiegel told the BBC in an interview at the company's California headquarters that the firm would be willing to set a maximum daily time limit for teenage users of Snapchat. He described such a move as a potentially important step forward for the social media industry as a whole.
The comments follow pressure from Meta, which has urged other social platforms to adopt changes it agreed to as part of a multi-billion dollar settlement with attorneys general representing most US states. Meta, which owns Instagram and Facebook, had been accused of deliberately designing its apps to be addictive to young users. As part of the settlement, Meta agreed to pay $12.7bn and introduce a default two-hour daily limit for teen accounts, along with muted notifications during school hours and restrictions at night.
Spiegel said Snap had thoughtfully reviewed the terms of Meta's settlement and viewed them as a useful step toward establishing industry-wide norms. However, he did not commit to a timeline for introducing such measures, saying only that the idea had been discussed internally. He pointed to Snap's existing Family Center feature, which lets parents monitor how teens use the app.
Under its settlement, Meta pledged an additional $5.3bn if YouTube and TikTok also adopt similar restrictions. Google, which owns YouTube, declined to comment on whether it would follow suit, while TikTok did not respond to a request for comment.
New smart glasses unveiled
Spiegel's comments came as Snap announced new features for its upcoming Specs glasses, which will be able to connect with Apple iPhone and Mac devices. The glasses will use artificial intelligence to offer suggestions based on a user's goals, relationships and routines, aiming to go beyond how people currently interact with chatbots. Specs will retail for $2,195 in the US and £1,995 in the UK, targeting early tech adopters, developers and enterprise customers. The device weighs about 130 grams and includes a white indicator light that flashes when recording, aimed at alerting people nearby.
