US EditionJury finds Instagram and YouTube liable in landmark social media addiction trial
A Los Angeles jury found Meta 70% and YouTube 30% liable for negligence, awarding $3 million in damages for addictive platform designs harming a young user.
- On Wednesday, a Los Angeles jury found Meta and Google-owned YouTube negligent in designing addictive platforms, awarding plaintiff Kaley G.M. $3 million in compensatory damages—70% to Meta, 30% to YouTube—and finding the companies acted with malice.
- The bellwether trial, which began in January in Los Angeles Superior Court, examined claims that features like "infinite scroll" and autoplay were intentionally designed to hook young users, which Kaley alleged fueled her anxiety and depression.
- Internal documents revealed Meta researchers found 11-year-olds were four times more likely to return to Instagram than competing apps, though defendants argued Kaley's struggles stemmed from a turbulent childhood rather than their platforms.
- A separate proceeding will determine punitive damages after the jury found the companies acted with egregious conduct; this follows a Tuesday decision ordering Meta to pay $375 million in a similar New Mexico child safety case.
- Experts compare this 'Big Tobacco' moment to 1990s tobacco litigation, as the verdict could influence thousands of pending suits from school districts and families, signaling tech firms may increasingly face liability for platform design.
645 Articles
645 Articles
A young woman receives compensation for her Instagram and Youtube addiction: This verdict has far-reaching consequences for Silicon Valley and its business model of attention economy.
Meta and YouTube found liable for designing harmful and addictive products
A Los Angeles jury found Wednesday that Meta and Youtube are liable for negligence in having knowingly designed addictive and harmful products. The platforms were found to have deliberately targeted children, which led to significant harm against the plaintiff. The judge awarded $3 million in damages for the plaintiff, and additional punitive damages to be decided at a later date. Snapchat and TikTok were also named in the lawsuit but settled ou…
Everyone Cheering The Social Media Addiction Verdicts Against Meta Should Understand What They’re Actually Cheering For
First things first: Meta is a terrible company that has spent years making terrible decisions and being terrible at explaining the challenges of social media trust & safety, all while prioritizing growth metrics over user safety. If you've been reading Techdirt for any length of time, you know we've been critical of the company for…
Landmark Trial Finds Meta, YouTube Liable For Social Media Addiction
Can a social media app really shape a child’s mental health? A jury in Los Angeles has delivered a verdict that suggests it can—and the decision could ripple across the tech world.In a landmark case, jurors ruled that Meta and Google deliberately designed their platforms to be addictive. Harming a young woman identified as Kaley.The 20-year-old was awarded $6 million in damages, with Meta responsible for 70% and Google for the rest.Kaley testifi…
Jury Rules Google and Meta's 'Addiction Machines' Ruined Teen's Life in Landmark Trial
A Los Angeles jury has ruled that Google and Meta's 'addictive' social media platforms harmed a young woman's childhood, the first verdict of its kind against the tech giants. The plaintiff, a 20-year-old woman named Kaley, said she started using YouTube at age six and Instagram at nine. Despite the age restrictions, she easily accessed both platforms as a minor, according to the BBC report. 'I stopped engaging with family because I was spending…
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