Good morning. In today’s edition:

•  📵 Canada's social media ban
• 🚀 SpaceX's record IPO
• 🤖 Religious exemption from AI

…and much more.

Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be a ~3.36-minute read (894 words).

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“Remember, today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.”

–Dale Carnegie (1888-1955)

Canada this week introduced legislation that would prohibit children under 16 from accessing social media platforms, becoming the latest country to consider major restrictions on how young people use social media.

The Safe Social Media Act would require users to verify they’re at least 16 years old before accessing major social media platforms, while allowing exemptions for companies that meet safety standards established by a new federal regulator.

• The legislation would also create a digital regulator responsible for developing safety standards for AI chatbots, though the proposed age restrictions wouldn't apply.
• Social media companies that fail to comply could face penalties of up to 3% of their global revenue or ~$7 million, whichever is greater.

The arguments

Those who support the proposal argue that social media carries enough potential risks for young users to warrant government action. They point to:

• Research linking heavy social media use to anxiety, depression, sleep disruption, and cyberbullying among some teenagers.
• Broad public support for age-based restrictions among Canadians.
• Backing from teachers' groups, medical organizations, and several provincial leaders.

On the flip side: Critics aren't necessarily defending social media. Instead, many question whether the cure is better than the disease.

Meta argues that social media bans are "counterproductive” and fail to address underlying issues. Some critics also note that restrictions could be ineffective if easily circumvented by teens, while others question whether social media is a primary driver of youth mental-health challenges—or if other factors play a bigger role.

Zoom out: Australia became the first country to approve a nationwide social media ban for users under 16 in December, with platforms deactivating nearly 5 million teen accounts. Greece has also announced plans to ban access for children under 15 beginning in 2027, while France, Denmark, and Poland are considering stricter rules for young users.

Looking ahead…Canada’s proposal still requires parliamentary approval, which could take roughly a year. If approved, officials say it would take another 18 months to establish a digital regulator for social media platforms and AI chatbots.

📊 Flash poll: Would you support or oppose a nationwide ban on social media use for users under the age of 16?

• Support
• Oppose
• Unsure/other

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Here are five stats from this past week that made our team go “whoa.” Hopefully you will, too.

🎓 At least 16 colleges charge $100,000+ for a single year of tuition, according to Princeton Review data shared with CNBC.

🎶 Just 44% of US consumers aged 13-24 said they listened to music from the 2020s the most of any decade last year, down from 55% in 2021

🌐🤖 Internet traffic from bots has surpassed human web traffic on the web for the first time, per Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince, who says bots now account for 57%+ of total HTTP requests compared to 42% for humans (largely driven by the rise of AI agents).

🤖 Mobile version of ChatGPT hits 1 billion monthly active users just three years after release, twice as fast as TikTok and nearly 3x as fast as Facebook and Instagram.

🇪🇸 Spain is on pace to welcome a record 100 million visitors this year, as Middle East tensions redirect more travelers toward the world’s second-biggest tourist destination.

BUSINESS & MARKETS

• 📈 US stocks close up across the board after President Trump calls off strikes on Iran. (S&P: +1.75% | Dow: +1.9% | Nasdaq: +2.5%)
• 🚀 SpaceX raises $75 billion in largest IPO ever, valuing the company at $1.77 trillion; SpaceX shares debut on public markets today.
• 🏦 Justice Department subpoenas some of America's largest banks—including JPMorgan and Bank of America—for information on whether they improperly closed customer accounts for political reasons, per WSJ report.

SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

• ⚽ World Cup: Action kicked off yesterday with Mexico defeating South Africa in the opener; Team USA plays tonight against Paraguay (8 pm CT).
• 🎶 Taylor Swift inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame last night alongside Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley from KISS, Alanis Morissette, Kenny Loggins, and more.
• 🥊 UFC Freedom 250 the UFC card hosted at the White House on President Trump’s 80th birthday, is set for Sunday.

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SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

• ☀️⚡ Solar power provided a larger share of America’s electricity than coal for the first time ever last month (12.8% vs. 12.2%), per new report.
• 🪱 CDC activates formal emergency response to New World screwworm as cases increase to eight across Texas and New Mexico.
• 🛰️ NOAA’s new space weather satellite, called SOLAR-1, can more quickly detect hazardous plasma blasts from the Sun and predict auroral displays on Earth.

US, WORLD & POLITICS

• 💥 Iran war: President Trump announces cancellation of planned strikes on Iran after Tehran’s leadership approves “discussions and final points” on a potential deal to end the war.
• 🏛️ President Trump says he’ll nominate former SEC chair Jay Clayton to be the next permanent director of national intelligence; he would replace acting DNI Bill Pulte, who himself is replacing Tulsi Gabbard later this month.
• 🗳️ House rejects short-term extension for Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which is set to expire today.

☝️ A 12-year-old boy named Corbin Bullard recently discovered an intact vertebra from a Tylosaurus fossil, a large marine reptile and apex predator that lived ~85 million years ago.

🤔 Did you know? The practice of “necroprinting,” or building 3D printers using the mouth of a mosquito, actually produces better results than conventional 3D printers.

📰 Worth a read: Everyone wants to think they’re open‑minded – here’s why most people aren’t

🖱️ What we’re clicking:

• You can now get a religious exemption from using AI at work
• You have no idea what a trillion dollars is—here’s proof
• The Bond villain lair where astronomers live

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1. A farmer takes 48 apples and packs them equally into 6 baskets. He then adds 2 more apples to each basket and gives away 3 baskets. How many apples does he still have?
2. A runner completes 7 laps around a 1/4-mile track. How many miles does the runner travel?
3. The temperature is 72°F in the afternoon. It drops 18 degrees overnight, then rises 7 degrees the next morning. What is the temperature now?

(keep scrolling for the answers)

🌳 The healing power of nature: Inmates in France are wrapping up their prison terms on rustic farms, helping them learn important life skills and reconnect with the world before their eventual release. It’s quite literally "a breath of fresh air."

+Note: This story previously appeared in Positive DONUT.

1. 30 apples
2. 1 ¾ miles
3. 61°F

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