Meta Scales AI Age-Estimation Tools Globally
AI-generated image · Bay Street Wire
The social media giant is deploying AI to identify teens on Instagram, Facebook, and Threads following massive legal settlements.
Meta announced Monday it is expanding AI-powered age-estimation technology across Instagram worldwide to better identify teen users and enroll them in "Teen Account" protections, according to TechCrunch. The move comes as Meta faces multiple lawsuits alleging its platforms cause harm to teenagers.
As reported by TechCrunch, the AI tools analyze profiles for contextual clues—including mentions of school grades or birthday celebrations—found in captions, bios, comments, and posts. The system also evaluates visual cues from videos and photos, such as bone structure and height, to identify users who may be teens even if they provided an adult birthday. Meta is currently rolling out this technology on Facebook, with a global launch for Threads planned for later this year.
Users identified as teens are placed into a stricter experience where accounts are private by default, harmful comments are hidden, and direct messages are restricted to existing connections.
This expansion follows an August settlement totaling up to $18 billion with the District of Columbia and 52 bipartisan attorneys general across U.S. states and territories. Per TechCrunch, Meta agreed as part of that settlement to improve its identification of children under 13 and teens aged 13 to 17. Meta stated in a blog post that it is investing in this technology to ensure users are in age-appropriate experiences.