Meta & YouTube Found Guilty In Landmark Social Media Addiction Trial

A Los Angeles jury has delivered a watershed verdict against Meta and Google, finding both companies liable for designing their platforms to addict young user. This is the first time a jury has ruled social media apps should be treated as defective products engineered to exploit the developing brains of children.

Compensatory damages were assessed at $3 million, with Meta responsible for 70 percent and YouTube the remaining 30 percent. Punitive damages amount to an additional $3 million, $2.1 million from Meta and $900,000 from YouTube, after jurors found the companies acted with malice, oppression, or fraud.

The verdict came after more than 40 hours of deliberation across nine days, following a seven-week trial at the Los Angeles County Superior Court.

Who was the plaintiff?

The plaintiff, a 20-year-old woman identified by her initials KGM, alleged that platform design features, including recommendation algorithms and auto-play, contributed to her severe body dysmorphia, depression, and suicidal thoughts. She claimed near-constant use of the apps, driven by constant notifications, made it near-impossible to disengage. She began using YouTube at age six and Meta-owned Instagram at age nine.

The plaintiff's lawyers showed the jury internal Meta documents in which executives described efforts to attract and retain children and teenagers on its platforms. One document reportedly stated, "If we wanna win big with teens, we must bring them in as tweens." Another showed that 11-year-olds were four times as likely to return to Instagram compared with competing apps, despite the platform requiring users to be at least 13.

Because thousands of families have filed similar lawsuits, KGM was selected as a bellwether plaintiff, a test case for both sides before a jury, potentially leading to broader settlements reminiscent of Big Tobacco and opioid trials. Both Meta and Google said they plan to appeal the verdict.