YouTube CEO Neal Mohan said the video platform is focused on its existing child-safety measures and dismissed the idea of joining a multistate settlement agreement reached by Meta over allegations that its platforms contributed to a youth mental health crisis.

“We have invested in making sure that young people are safe on our platform… for a very long time,” Mohan told CNN. He said YouTube would continue focusing on its existing safety efforts.

Meta recently agreed to an $18 billion multistate settlement resolving claims that it designed addictive platforms that contributed to mental health problems among young people.

As part of the agreement, Meta has sought to encourage rival platforms, including YouTube and TikTok, to adopt similar measures. The proposals include limits on the amount of time teenagers can spend on the platforms, removing “like” counts for teen users and allowing third-party oversight of safety practices.

Mohan made the comments during a meeting with reporters at YouTube’s annual Made on YouTube event on Wednesday. The Google-owned platform also announced new features for creators and viewers, including artificial intelligence tools and messaging functions.

Meta reached the settlement midway through the trial in the multistate lawsuit. The company has promoted the agreement as a significant step toward improving online safety for young people and has publicly encouraged other platforms to follow similar measures.

Under the terms described by Meta, the company would pay only 70% of the settlement unless TikTok and YouTube agreed to contribute about $6 billion each and implement comparable changes.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta has said states are prepared to take YouTube and TikTok to court if necessary to bring them into the agreement.

Mohan said YouTube was confident in the safety measures it had already introduced. One example is a feature allowing parents to limit the amount of time teenagers spend watching its short-form video service, Shorts.

He also said YouTube works with outside experts to advise the company on child-safety features.

“We’re a very different platform (from Meta), too,” Mohan said, pointing to YouTube’s growing focus on viewers watching content on television screens in their homes.

TikTok has not publicly commented on calls for it to join Meta’s agreement. Bonta’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Mohan’s position.

YouTube and Meta also faced a separate legal challenge in March, when a Los Angeles jury found both companies liable in a case involving allegations that their platforms intentionally encouraged addictive use and harmed a young woman’s mental health. Both companies have said they plan to appeal the verdict.

A YouTube spokesperson previously disputed the characterization of the platform, describing it as a streaming service rather than a social media site.

Earlier this year, YouTube settled a similar case brought by another teenager. TikTok and Snap also reached settlements with the teenager, while the case against Meta was dropped.

Despite those settlements, YouTube, Meta, TikTok and Snap continue to face hundreds of lawsuits filed by individuals, families and school districts alleging that their platforms have harmed young users.

SOURCE: CNN, Clare Duffy, September 25, 2026.