Overview

• In his Stanford Business School talk, Chen said he would not let his children exclusively consume short-form clips, arguing they hamper engagement with content over 15 minutes long.
• He warned that rapid, bite-sized videos condition younger viewers to shorter attention spans and criticized platforms like TikTok for prioritizing fleeting entertainment.
• Chen proposed that platforms enforce age-based daily usage limits and implement app-level safeguards to curb addictive short-form feeds for children.
• Short-form formats have driven a surge in ad revenue—YouTube is on track to exceed $40 billion this year—highlighting a conflict between monetization goals and youth well-being.
• His call has reignited discussions among parents, educators and tech leaders, echoing concerns voiced by Sam Altman and Jonathan Haidt over social media’s impact on child development.