Prince Harry has held his latest pseudo-royal engagement in New York where he joked about his misspent youth and spoke of his love for Archie and Lilibet in a plea to better protect children from the ‘harm’ caused by social media.

The Duke of Sussex, 40, addressed the audience at the 2024 Clinton Global Initiative event this morning, warning of the ‘crisis’ faced by young people due to the online world.

Harry walked on to stage alone and went straight into a speech about the dangers of social media, and ‘the pervasive threat that our online world poses to us, especially our children’.

He then poked fun at the antics in his own youth, which prompted laughter in the audience. Harry said: ‘Some say kids will be kids and well, that may well be true. Kids may get into trouble. I know a thing or two about that. But our kids are being targeted. The harmful effects of social media are made by design.’ 

He added: ‘These platforms are designed to create addiction’. 

In a moving speech he said that the lock screen on his phone has a picture of Archie and Lilibet.  But he then shared pictures of children who have taken or lost their own lives due to the ‘harmful effects of social media’. 

Pulling out his phone from his inside jacket pocket, he said: ‘My lock screen is a picture of my kids. What’s yours?’ Photos of young people shown as images on mobile phone lock screens appeared on the large screen behind him.

The duke said: ‘These children and thousands more meant the world to their families. Their beautiful faces you see before you, their smiles, their dreams, all lost, all too soon, and all because of social media.’

Harry was serious as he spoke out about needing to protect children better from the online world

But he was all smiles when he joked about his own scrapes. ‘Kids may get into trouble. I know a thing or two about that’, he said

The Duke of Sussex looked solemn in front of photos of young people shown as images on mobile phone lock screens who had lost their lives due to social media

Harry warned the audience: ‘The harmful effects of social media are made by design’

Harry is in New York for the week on a series of engagements before heading to London on Monday

Harry was thanked loudly by audience members for his words

Prince Harry on stage at the 2024 Clinton Global Initiative event in New York today

Harry said they were the inspiration for why his Archewell Foundation launched the Parents Network, a support network for parents of children affected by online harm.

Harry said that through The Archewell Foundation Parents’ Network, his and Meghan’s charity, they will campaign for more to support families of children who have lost their lives to online abuse – and stop further tragedies.

He began by saying ‘Good morning’ to which someone in audience responded by shouting the same, with Harry smiling and saying ‘thank you’.

The duke said: ‘I stand before you today to speak about the pervasive threat that our online world poses to us, especially our children.

‘If we allow the status quo to remain in an age where our lives are intertwined with technology, we cannot afford to only see the online world as a space for profitability, competition, and rapid growth instead.’

He said that he and many other parents never grew up with a mobile phone, and were struggling to understand the online world and help their children navigate it.

By appearing during Day 2 of the Clinton Global Initiative 2024 Annual Meeting in NYC, this was already his fifth engagement in three days

He warned that social media platforms are ‘designed to create addiction’

He vowed to use The Archewell Foundations to campaign to protect children and support families

The Duke of Sussex, in a passionate speech, said: ‘These platforms are designed to create addiction.

‘Young people are kept there by mindless, endless, numbing, scrolling, being force fed content that no child should ever be exposed to.

‘I, like many of you, do not grow up with a phone. Young people today possess an incredible understanding of technology that older generations may struggle to grasp.’

He went on: ‘Our laws and regulations are different, state to state, country to country.

‘We may have different backgrounds, viewpoints, beliefs, and even access to the internet itself, but the one thing that we can universally agree on is the safety of our children.

‘So why do the leaders of these insanely powerful social media companies still refuse to change? Why are we holding them to the lowest ethical standards?’

In a seeming nod to his antics in his younger days which prompted laughter in the audience, Harry said: ‘Some say kids will be kids and well, that may well be true. Kids may get into trouble. I know a thing or two about that.

‘But our kids are being targeted. The harmful effects of social media are made by design.’

On Monday, the Duke of Sussex, 40, appeared on stage in New York to discuss mental health and climate change with two young winners of a legacy award given in Princess Diana’s memory.

But before taking to the platform, the King’s youngest son FaceTimed his wife, Meghan Markle, 43, and their children, Prince Archie, five, and Princess Lilibet, three, according to People magazine.

The publication wrote that Harry reportedly showcased the room to his family, giving them a little tour of the hotel space before taking part in the 14th Concordia Annual Summit in support of The Diana Award.

‘Backstage, he was actually calling Meghan. I thought that was just so sweet, and it helped humanise him,’ Diana Legacy Award winner Chiara Riyanti Hutapea Zhang, 18, who joined Harry for the panel discussion on mental health, told the publication.

On Monday, the Duke of Sussex, 40, appeared on stage in New York to discuss mental health and climate change with two young winners of a legacy award given in Princess Diana ‘s memory

Prince Harry is away from his home of Montecito for eight days as he conducts a solo trip to the East Coast and the UK – but clearly, his family (pictured) have been on his mind during his visits

‘He made sure we had no nerves at all… He is just so kind-hearted. Not only was he helping us get comfortable with speaking on stage, but he comforted us after as well,’ added the award recipient.

Harry, who cracked his knuckles and looked nervous as he sat down on stage, spoke of the importance of mental wellness at the event, where participants talked about their climate anxiety.

He personally interviewed Chiara Riyanti Hutapea Zhang from Indonesia and Christina Williams from Jamaica, who received The Legacy Award in memory of Princess Diana, joking: ‘For some reason I’ve been given the microphone to ask the questions.’

He told them: ‘I applaud you for having the confidence to be on this stage. I know my mother would be incredibly proud of you guys. Your activism is true to how my mother lived her life.’

Harry, wearing a navy suit and tie with a Diana Award pin on his lapel, asked: ‘Do you feel like leaders and people in positions of power are listening to you?’, adding that he wanted the The Diana Award to help their campaigning to tackle climate change and bring influence around the world.

And when asked what gives him hope for the future he said: ‘I have said it before years ago and I’ll say it again. The younger generation is what gives me hope. The courage you have gives me hope. 

‘Everyone of us needs courage to move the dial in this world, probably more than ever. We need to listen and act on what you say because it is your future that will be stolen and that is unacceptable’.