Reconsidering Tech Exceptionalism: What Should the Future of Internet Regulation Look Like?
Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, established in 2015, is the world’s first online safety regulator. At the end of 2025, after ten years of quieter work, eSafety made international headlines by instituting the world’s first social media laws obligating major platforms, including Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube, to restrict access to children under the age of 16. Since then, efforts to make social media platforms more accountable in the face of safety concerns have expanded internationally, especially as seen recently in landmark verdicts in the United States against Meta and Google.
Against this backdrop, the Penn Program on Regulation is delighted to host a conversation with Julie Inman Grant, Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, a position she has held since 2017. The discussion, which will be moderated by PPR Director Cary Coglianese, will go beyond social media to address other internet issues such as the regulation of AI chatbots and companions, deepfakes, and various forms of cyber abuse.
Please note that this event will be held in person only, although Commissioner Grant will be speaking remotely from Australia. Snacks will be served.
This event is open only to members of the Penn community. A valid Penn ID is required for admission.
Location:
Penn Carey Law, Silverman 240B
3501 Sansom Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104
Sponsored by:
Speaker
Julie Inman Grant
Julie Inman Grant PSM is Australia’s eSafety Commissioner and leads the world’s first government regulatory agency dedicated to keeping its citizens safer online.
Appointed in January 2017, Julie has transformed eSafety into a globally recognised regulator, expanding its remit, capability and impact while implementing world-leading initiatives and frameworks to address online harms.
Julie began her career at the US Congress in Washington, DC, before spending 17 years at Microsoft in senior corporate affairs roles. She later established Twitter’s public policy and philanthropy programmes across Australia, New Zealand and Southeast Asia, and led Government Relations across APAC for Adobe.
As Commissioner, Julie has driven significant regulatory reform and launched innovative initiatives such as Safety by Design, Women in the Spotlight and a tech trends horizon scanning program to anticipate emerging online harms. This includes establishing and uplifting a range of public complaints and investigations schemes to deliver rapid and compassionate harms remediation for Australians experiencing serious online abuse. Under her leadership, eSafety has embedded a holistic, ecosystem-based model of regulation, applying shared responsibility and accountability across the digital value chain, from platforms to app stores and device manufacturers.
A cornerstone of this work is the development and enforcement of world-first systemic industry codes and standards addressing illegal content, age-restricted material and emerging AI harms. These frameworks hold platforms accountable for the design and operation of their services, requiring them to reduce risk at scale and embed Safety by Design.
Julie also successfully led the implementation of Australia’s landmark social media minimum age legislation, the first of its kind globally, placing clear responsibility on age-restricted platforms to prevent children under 16 from holding accounts. Together, these reforms represent a structural shift in online safety regulation, strengthening protections for children and young people while rebalancing accountability across the digital ecosystem.
Julie serves as a Senior Advisor to the Technology Policy Design Centre and is the former Chair of the Australian Digital Platforms Regulatory Forum (DP-REG). She is co-founder and inaugural Chair of the Global Online Safety Regulators Network, a long-serving Board Member of the WePROTECT Global AllianceExternal link, a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Coalition for Digital SafetyExternal link, and represents Australia in the Global Partnership for Action on Gender-Based Harassment and Abuse.
In 2025, Julie was recognised by the Australian Financial Review as one of the most culturally powerful people in Australia and was named marie claire Australia’s ‘Powerhouse of the Year’. In 2026, she was awarded the Public Service Medal in the Australia Day Honours for outstanding service to online safety regulation and recognised by Time Magazine’s ‘Global Health 100’ for her leadership implementing world-first protections for under 16s online.