Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, began his testimony Tuesday in a trial alleging that Meta Platforms Inc. intentionally designed Instagram and Facebook to addict children, disregarding their safety. The lawsuit, brought by 29 U.S. states, represents a significant legal challenge to the impact of social media on young users.
Attorneys for California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey contend that Meta engineered its platforms to hook young users, contributing to increased rates of anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation. The states also assert that Meta violated federal law by improperly collecting and using personal data from children under 13. The plaintiffs are seeking up to $200 billion in civil penalties.
Meta has denied the accusations, asserting that it did not seek to addict children for profit and that its research shows no conclusive link between adolescent social media use and diminished well-being. The trial is ongoing in Oakland, California, and is expected to continue through September. Jurors will provide an advisory verdict, with U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ultimately deciding on Meta's liability and any potential penalties or platform modifications.
Prior to Mosseri's testimony, Francesco Fogu, Instagram's director of product design, testified about a 2023 presentation concerning teenage safety. Under questioning, Fogu acknowledged that data showing teenage users encountered 1.5 times more bullying, suicide, hate, nudity, and violent content than adult users was removed from a slide. He also stated that Instagram was aware fewer users would engage with its "take a break" feature if it was not the default setting.
In February, Mosseri testified in a separate Los Angeles trial where a jury ordered Meta and Alphabet Inc.'s Google to pay $6 million to a young woman who claimed childhood addiction to Instagram and YouTube. Jurors in that case found both Meta and Google negligent in their platform designs. Mosseri disputed claims that Instagram neglected children's safety and defended its design choices against accusations of harm from former company insiders, stating that Instagram's products and policies are continually evolving to address key issues. Earlier in August, a New Mexico judge ordered Meta to pay $567 million to address teenagers' mental health concerns, following the state's attorney general's designation of the platforms as a public nuisance. Tennessee is also pursuing similar claims against Meta regarding Instagram in a separate trial.