Elon Musk warns about over exposure to social media for kids: 'There is extreme competition'

In April last year, Elon Musk had said that rules governing social media content in India were quite strict after India had dismissed the BBC documentary.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has cautioned the over exposure of social media to kids. Writing on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday, Musk spoke about how children were vulnerable to highly developed artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms which were designed to increase user engagement by boosting dopamine levels.

"A lot of social media is bad for kids, as there is extreme competition between social media AIs to maximize dopamine!" Musk wrote on the social media platform.

A lot of social media is bad for kids, as there is extreme competition between social media AIs to maximize dopamine! https://t.co/bzB8m5qL9z

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— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 23, 2024

"Parents need to limit screen time. Kids still need to go outside and play. Read books. It's truly sad how much social media has impacted children's lives," one user wrote.

"My kids are banned from social media until they are 18. They only have flip phones. If they want to see their friends they can walk to their house like we did in the 80's-90's," another user wrote.

"Parents should know everything their kids are doing on social media and should control how much time is spent online. Sadly, I don’t think the majority of parents know where their kids are at online and how much time they are spending," another user wrote.

In April last year, Musk had said that rules governing social media content in India were "quite strict" after India had dismissed the BBC documentary as a "propaganda piece", saying it is designed to push a particular "discredited narrative" and that the continuing colonial mindset is "blatantly visible" in the series.