‘Why would you put a toxic product into the hands of a young child?’: director turned activist Beeban Kidron on why big tech needs its ‘tobacco moment’

2026-06-13 · Source: AI (artificial intelligence) | The Guardian · Field: Technology & Digital — Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning, Cybersecurity & Data Privacy, Emerging Technologies & Innovation · Depth: Fundamental Awareness, long

Summary

Beeban Kidron, a director and online safety campaigner, argues that big tech needs its "tobacco moment" due to the pervasive harms inflicted on children and society. Her book, "Users," details her decade-long fight, stemming from her 2012 documentary on smartphones changing childhood and her founding of the 5Rights Foundation. Kidron expresses fury at politicians' inaction and tech companies' resistance to safeguards, citing their ability to suppress Covid misinformation but not child sexual abuse. She highlights the trauma of AI-generated child sexual abuse material (CSAM), which can use images of real children, and warns against sharing children's pictures online. Kidron criticizes the influence of tech money on politics and advocates for individuals to reclaim agency by managing their digital attention, suggesting practices like keeping phones silent and delaying phone access for children.

Key takeaway

For policymakers weighing tech regulation, Kidron's "tobacco moment" analogy underscores the urgency of state intervention against online harms. You should prioritize robust legislation, such as social media bans for under-16s and AI chatbot regulation, over economic growth narratives. Your policies must protect vulnerable users from AI-generated abuse and reclaim national data assets from foreign tech companies, resisting industry deference.

Key insights

Big tech's unchecked power and profit-driven models inflict preventable harm on children, necessitating urgent regulation and individual agency.

Principles

• Tech companies prioritize profit over user safety.
• Political deference to tech hinders effective regulation.
• Online harms, like AI CSAM, are not damage-free.

In practice

• Avoid sharing children's pictures on public platforms.
• Keep personal phones silent; check messages intentionally.
• Delay giving children smartphones until much later.

Topics

• Online Safety
• Child Protection
• Tech Regulation
• AI-generated CSAM
• Data Sovereignty
• 5Rights Foundation

Best for: Executive, AI Product Manager, Policy Maker, AI Ethicist, General Interest

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Editorial summary, takeaway, and curation by AIssential. Original article published by AI (artificial intelligence) | The Guardian.