Reddit is upgrading its moderation and abuse-prevention systems in an effort to make communities easier for new users to join. The company says stronger built-in protections could eventually reduce moderators’ reliance on account age and karma thresholds, which can block legitimate newcomers from posting. Reddit Wants Fewer Barriers for New UsersMany communities require accounts to reach a certain age or karma score before users can post or comment. Karma increases when other Reddit users upvote someone’s posts and comments, making it a common way for moderators to filter spam, bots and abusive accounts. AI-Powered Rules Hub ExpandsReddit is also expanding testing of Rules Hub, a suite of moderation tools that lets moderators choose which community rules should be automatically enforced.