Meta rejects US states' claims it designed apps to hook children

Meta Platforms rejected claims that it deliberately designed Facebook and Instagram to foster compulsive use among young users, marking the beginning of a landmark trial in Oakland, California, as reported by Business Times. A bipartisan coalition of 29 US states is suing the tech giant over alleged youth mental health harms and privacy violations, with four lead states — California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey — spearheading the litigation.

The states allege that Meta prioritized corporate profits by exploiting the psychological vulnerabilities of children and teens, while publicly maintaining that its platforms were safe. According to Yahoo News, Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman described the proceeding as the largest consumer protection lawsuit in American history, comparing the state coalition's strategy to historic litigation against the tobacco and opioid industries.

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Legal strategy and courtroom structure emerged as an early battleground. Meta had argued for a series of smaller trials grouping states with similar laws, warning that a combined proceeding would blur legal standards. US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ultimately adopted a hybrid approach for the multi-week trial, allowing the lead states to try their state law claims together while including federal claims brought by all participating states, according to reporting highlighted by the Express Tribune.

Meta lawyer Paul Schmidt countered that while some users experience struggles, independent research shows no clear causal link between adolescent social media use and a lack of well-being. Schmidt argued that Meta’s leadership desires to improve services rather than endanger users, stating that Meta rejects claims it sought to hook children to Facebook and Instagram as the landmark trial begins. Furthermore, a company spokesperson dismissed the states' claims as unsubstantiated and characterized their financial demands as vastly disproportionate, pointing to existing safeguards such as Teen Accounts and age-detection technology.

Legal stakes in the federal courtroom are exceptionally high. The plaintiff states have suggested penalties could reach roughly $200 billion, representing approximately three years of after-tax profit for the Menlo Park-based company, while Meta’s own court filings warned that potential financial fallout could scale as high as $1.4 trillion, a figure nearing the firm's market capitalisation. Plaintiffs are demanding structural overhauls to Instagram and Facebook, including the removal of infinite scrolls, the elimination of public like counts, restrictions on ephemeral messaging like Instagram Stories, and tighter parental verification protocols.

The trial unfolds against a backdrop of recent legal setbacks for the social media conglomerate. A New Mexico judge recently ordered Meta to pay hundreds of millions of dollars and restricted push notifications for young users after branding the company's platforms a public nuisance. Meanwhile, a Los Angeles jury previously found Meta and YouTube liable in a separate case involving a young user's social media addiction.

During opening statements in Oakland, California’s Deputy Attorney General Megan O'Neill told the eight-person advisory jury that Meta's business model relied on harvesting user data and concealing internal safety research from the public. Arturo Bejar, a former Meta safety engineer and whistleblower, took the stand as the states' first witness, testifying that safety was frequently omitted from initial product deployments like Reels, despite Meta attempting to block his testimony over deleted Signal messages.

Key Issues and Demands in the Meta Trial

• Financial Exposure: States are pursuing damages around $200 billion, while Meta estimates potential worst-case penalties could reach $1.4 trillion.
• Platform Alterations: Plaintiffs demand the removal of infinite scrolling, like counts, and ephemeral posts such as Instagram Stories.
• Federal Claims: The lawsuit includes allegations under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) regarding unauthorized personal data collection.
• Defense Position: Meta maintains its features are benign, emphasizes recent protections like Teen Accounts, and argues research fails to link social media directly to diminished adolescent well-being.

The multi-week proceedings in the US District Court for the Northern District of California are expected to last between six and eight weeks, featuring anticipated testimony from high-profile figures including Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram head Adam Mosseri. While the eight-person jury will issue an advisory verdict, US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers will ultimately determine liability and rule on whether to impose civil penalties and structural platform changes.