The 1-2-3s of Age Verification Compliance in the United States
Lawmakers across the United States are introducing a wave of age-verification and parental-consent laws aimed at protecting kids online. While well-intentioned, these state-by-state approaches create a confusing and costly patchwork for startups and independent developers. And, as we have seen in other efforts to use age verification methods, the very people these laws aim to protect often become more vulnerable to the harms they were meant to prevent. To help our members stay ahead, we’re breaking it down into two [...]
ACT | The App Association Statement on Executive Order on State AI Laws
WASHINGTON, D.C. - ACT | The App Association issued the following statement on the issuance of the new Executive Order regarding State AI laws: "This has got to stop. We are stuck in the mud on AI policy in this country while others are racing ahead, and they aren't our friends" said Morgan Reed, president of ACT | The App Association. "We can see where this approach will get us, because it is playing out in Europe. The EU's [...]
Conversations Shaping the Future of Innovation Across Europe
Europe is at a pivotal moment for innovation, and we’ve been on the ground across the continent to make sure small-tech voices are included in the decisions being made in Brussels. Every conversation, from policy hackathons to founder workshops, pointed to the same reality: Europe’s digital future depends on regulation that strengthens competition and provides practical pathways for startups to participate and grow. Below is a roundup of our recent events in the EU and how you can plug [...]
How the App Store Accountability Act Fails Children, Parents, and Developers
During a recent House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade hearing, Legislative Solutions to Protect Children and Teens Online, Rep. John James (R-MI) championed the App Store Accountability Act (ASAA, H.R. 3149) as an effective, privacy-protective solution to protect children online. He argued that by requiring app stores to conduct age verification, the bill would empower parents to safeguard their children and extend offline protections to the digital ecosystem. However, this framing overlooks the substantial compliance [...]
A Scroll Down Membership Lane: November 2025’s Member Mondays
ACT | The App Association’s members drive the innovation that powers our digital world. Each month, through our Member Monday series, we spotlight these trailblazing small businesses and their cutting-edge achievements. This month, we highlighted the top tech policy fights across our key regions and what they mean for small developers. In the EU, debates over encryption are reshaping how secure services operate; in the UK, SEP reform will decide whether startups can use standards to innovate on fair, [...]