In a major case between Meta and 52 attorneys general across the U.S. alleging the social media giant knowingly designed products that were harmful and addictive to kids, the two sides settled on Wednesday, with the Facebook and Instagram parent company agreeing to pay about $17 billion. It's one of multiple trials related to alleged harms to young users that Meta has faced this year alone.

The settlement's sum "can be used to fund youth online safety initiatives, among other state priorities," according to a statement by the company on Wednesday. "It's the highest amount of money ever paid in a case like this," California Attorney General Rob Bonta, who co-led the effort, told CNBC's David Faber on "Squawk on the Street" on Thursday. Still, "the core of this case is not the financial penalties that Meta is paying," Bonta said. "It is the business practices that they will change that will help protect the mental health of our kids."

The settlement requires Meta to enforce a series of safeguards and parental control features for under 18-year-old users of Facebook and Instagram. Most of the terms are required to remain in place for 10 years, and Meta's payments will be distributed annually over that decade, according to the company's statement. The company has a $1.47 trillion market capitalization, as of Friday afternoon, slightly up from its $1.45 trillion at Tuesday's market close.

When it comes to a safer online experience for young users, many of the settlement's mandated features are promising, says Laura Edelson, an assistant professor of computer sciences at Northeastern University whose research has focused on social media safety.

In June 2026, Edelson co-authored a research report which found that nearly 60% of social media safety features across the industry failed to effectively protect young users. Studies have found associations between higher screen time use and poor mental and physical health among teens, and about half of U.S. teenagers report spending at least four hours per day using social media, according to Gallup.

Meta is far from the only social media company to draw attention for its approach to child safety. TikTok, for example, agreed to a $400 million settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice on Aug. 21 to resolve allegations of children's online privacy law violations. YouTube, which has faced similar litigation in years past, released new teen-focused protections in January, including the ability for parents to set time limits on YouTube Shorts for their kids.

The Meta settlement also mandates daily time limits for kids across both Facebook and Instagram, part of a package of features that "research has been pointing to as to what would be helpful," Edelson says. Still, the mandates aren't necessarily perfect, she adds.

Here are some of the new elements of the two Meta-owned platforms, and how Edelson thinks they could affect teens' online experience.