A California jury has ruled that Meta and Google are liable for intentionally engineering addictive features in Instagram and YouTube, causing lasting psychological harm to a young user who grew up on their platforms.
The jury awarded the plaintiff, identified as KGM, $6 million total — $3 million in compensatory damages and $3 million in punitive damages — allocating 70 percent ($4.2 million) to Meta and 30 percent ($1.8 million) to Google. Deliberations over punitive damages had exceeded 40 hours in Los Angeles Superior Court.
The 20-year-old petitioner testified that she began using the platforms at age six and experienced anxiety, body dysmorphia, depression and suicidal thoughts. She described panic when separated from her phone, an obsession with likes and notifications, and uploading more than 300 YouTube videos by age 10.
Jurors concluded both companies failed to warn users about risks tied to features such as autoplay, infinite scroll and engagement-maximizing algorithms.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram head Adam Mosseri testified; Mosseri characterized “social media addiction” as “problematic usage.” A Google representative said the case concerned YouTube, which the company described as built for streaming rather than as a social media service.
TikTok and Snapchat were also defendants but reached pre-trial settlements, reflecting rising pressure on platforms over youth harm. Meta said it plans to appeal, with a spokesperson stating disagreement with the verdict and noting the complexity of teen mental health.
The decision challenges protections under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 and could influence similar lawsuits and policy changes aimed at protecting children online. Experts say it may prompt stricter age limits, stronger content filters and greater platform liability as concerns grow over tech’s role in youth mental health.
