Meta Platforms reached an $18 billion settlement with 29 U.S. state attorneys general during the second week of an August trial over allegations that Instagram and Facebook used design features harmful to younger users. The agreement requires changes for users under 18, including a two-hour daily usage limit, tighter age verification and restrictions on extreme makeup and cosmetic surgery filters. Meta will pay over 10 years and record a $10 billion legal charge in the third quarter, while leaving its July guidance unchanged. Full payment depends on Alphabet’s YouTube and TikTok adopting similar protections. Morgan Stanley said the settlement could clear a legal obstacle to Meta’s artificial intelligence pipeline, highlighting MetaClaw, agentic advertising tools, subscriptions, APIs and potential neocloud opportunities, while cautioning that the products were not necessarily ready for imminent launch. Meta is also reportedly preparing Hatch, a consumer AI agent that could operate within WhatsApp and Instagram and handle online purchases and restaurant bookings. Needham retained its Hold rating and raised concerns about the company’s simultaneous investments across chips, infrastructure, software, advertising, assistants and hardware. Those spending demands include as much as $145 billion in capital expenditures in 2026. Meta shares were up 3.24% at $612.07 at publication on Thursday, according to Benzinga Pro data. The stock had a consensus Buy rating and an average price forecast of $768.81.