This week, Australia implemented the most aggressive social media ban in a democracy to date, kicking children under 16 off 10 of the most popular social platforms. We discuss how the platforms lost the argument around child safety and whether others will follow Australia’s lead. Then, the blogger Andy Masley joins us to separate fact from fiction on the topic of A.I. water use. Is it a distraction from other more pressing environmental concerns? And finally, our first-ever “Hard Fork” Wrapped: We break down our favorite “Hard Fork” stats from 2025 and bring you up to date on three of our biggest stories of the year.

Guests:

• Andy Masley, blogger The Weird Turn Pro

Additional Reading: 

• A Grand Social Media Experiment Begins in Australia
• The A.I. water issue is fake
• Why Is Everyone So Wrong About A.I. Water Use?
• Trump Signs Executive Order to Neuter State A.I. Laws
• Trump Clears Sale of More Powerful Nvidia A.I. Chips to China
• We Asked Roblox’s C.E.O. About Child Safety. It Got Tense.

We want to hear from you. Email us at hardfork@nytimes.com. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.

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