YouTube CEO dismisses the idea of joining Meta’s multistate child safety settlement

By Clare Duffy, CNN

New York (CNN) — YouTube CEO Neal Mohan dismissed the idea of joining Meta’s multistate settlement agreement around child safety, saying the video platform already has measures in place to protect young users.

“We have invested in making sure that young people are safe on our platform… for a very long time,” Mohan told CNN. “What you should expect from YouTube is continuing to focus on those things.”

Meta agreed to the landmark, $18 billion agreement to settle claims from multiple states alleging that it designed addictive platforms that contributed to a youth mental health crisis.

Meta has sought to pressure rivals like YouTube and TikTok to make similar changes to the ones outlined in its agreement, including introducing time limits and removing “like” counts for teen users, and third-party oversight for its safety practices.

Mohan’s comments came during a meeting with reporters at the Google-owned platform’s annual Made on YouTube event on Wednesday. At the event, the company announced updates to how creators and viewers can use the platform, including new AI tools and messaging features.

Meta agreed to the settlement midway through the trial in the multistate lawsuit, and it has tried to frame the settlement as an industry-leading move for youth safety, making statements and running ads encouraging other platforms to follow suit.

As part of the deal, Meta said it would pay out only 70% of the settlement unless TikTok and YouTube agreed to pay around $6 billion each and make similar changes. And California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the states are willing to take TikTok and YouTube to court if needed to get them on board with the deal.

But Mohan expressed confidence in the safety steps YouTube has already taken, such as an option for parents to limit the time their teens can spend scrolling through its short-form video feature, Shorts. He added that YouTube works with third-party experts to advise on child safety features.

“We’re a very different platform (from Meta), too,” he said, adding that the company is leaning into users watching more of its content on living room TVs.

TikTok has not commented on calls to join Meta’s agreement. Attorney General Bonta’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Mohan’s stance.

YouTube, along with Meta, was found liable in a separate trial in March for intentionally addicting a young woman and harming her mental health following a trial in Los Angeles. Both companies plan to appeal the verdict, with a YouTube spokesperson saying at the time that it “misunderstands YouTube, which is a responsibly built streaming platform, not a social media site.”

YouTube settled with another teen with similar claims earlier this year, as did TikTok and Snap; the teen dropped the case against Meta. All four companies continue to face hundreds of lawsuits from individuals, families and school districts claiming their platforms harmed young users.

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