Meta paid $9.89 billion to settle a portion of a child safety lawsuit, according to company records. The social media giant agreed to pay $17.1 billion to resolve a nationwide lawsuit in August.
A New Mexico state judge ordered Meta to pay $25 billion on 21 October after a jury found the company liable for the Cambridge Analytica scandal. Operating income would have reached $22.89 billion if the company had not incurred the $9.89 billion settlement cost.
The company reported $64.60 billion in revenue, representing a 26 percent increase compared to the same period last year. Total costs and expenses for the period reached $51.61 billion.
Meta will pay $5.3 billion of the settlement if TikTok and YouTube adopt more rigorous safeguards and settings for children. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said, "Our investments are paying off, the core business is strong, and we’re seeing velocity across the board."
Zuckerberg noted that more than 10 million people in the United States and Canada have already set up Muse agents since the company introduced the AI agent last month. Zuckerberg added, "We hit major milestones this quarter toward delivering personal superintelligence for everyone."
