TikTok is launching in-app guided meditation exercises, the social network announced on Thursday. The company began testing the meditation exercises with select teens earlier this year and is now making the feature available to all users on its app.
The idea behind the feature is to help users improve their sleep quality and encourage them to put the app down during those late-night endless scrolling sessions.
For teens under the age of 18, meditation will be turned on by default. If a teen is using the app after 10 p.m., their For You feed will be interrupted by a guided meditation exercise that encourages them to wind down for the night. The meditation features a calming screen and soft music alongside breathing exercises.
If teens choose to ignore the message and continue to use the app, they will see a second full-screen prompt that will nudge them to go to sleep.
TikTok has been introducing new teen safety features over the past few years in response to concerns over the app’s impact on its youngest users. The new meditation feature marks the company’s latest effort to appease lawmakers.
Adults who are interested in the meditation feature can turn it on by navigating to the app’s Screen Time settings page. From there, you just need to toggle on the “sleep hours” feature. You can choose what time you want to see the meditation exercise each night.
TikTok also announced that it’s going to donate $2.3 million in ad credits to 31 mental health organizations in 19 countries around the world as part of its Mental Health Education Fund.
Aisha is a consumer news reporter at TechCrunch. Prior to joining the publication in 2021, she was a telecom reporter at MobileSyrup. Aisha holds an honours bachelor’s degree from University of Toronto and a master’s degree in journalism from Western University.
