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Meta and YouTube Face Landmark Trial Over Alleged Addictive Design Targeting Children
The case could reshape how responsibility is assigned to Big Tech companies for the impact of their platforms on young users.
Published on Feb. 10, 2026
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A 20-year-old woman is suing Meta Platforms and Google's YouTube, alleging that the companies deliberately designed their products to addict children. The lawsuit claims the platforms' features were engineered to exploit how children's brains develop, keeping them engaged for as long as possible despite the potential harm. The trial is seen as a major test of whether social media and video-sharing companies can be held legally liable for the way their apps are designed, rather than just the content posted by users.
Why it matters
A verdict against the companies could make it easier for similar lawsuits to move forward in state courts and potentially weaken the technology industry's long-standing legal defenses in the United States. Meta, Google, TikTok, and Snap currently face thousands of related lawsuits in California alone, many of them accusing the platforms of being harmful by design.
The details
The lawsuit was brought by a 20-year-old woman identified as Kaley G.M., who alleges that she became hooked on social media at a young age due to intentionally addictive features built into the platforms, and that prolonged exposure worsened her mental health. Kaley's lawyer argued that internal company documents show the platforms were engineered to exploit how children's brains develop. Meta and Google have denied the allegations, maintaining that their platforms are not responsible for Kaley's mental health issues and that they have taken steps to improve safety, particularly for younger users.
- The trial began on Monday, February 10, 2026.
- The first federal trial in related lawsuits could begin as early as June 2026.
The players
Kaley G.M.
A 20-year-old woman who is suing Meta Platforms and Google's YouTube, alleging that the companies deliberately designed their products to addict children.
Mark Lanier
Kaley's lawyer, who argued that internal company documents show the platforms were engineered to exploit how children's brains develop.
Paul Schmidt
Meta's attorney, who pointed to Kaley's personal history and argued that other factors played a far greater role in her struggles than the removal of Instagram from her life.
Meta Platforms
The parent company of Facebook and Instagram, which is a defendant in the lawsuit.
The company that owns YouTube, which is also a defendant in the lawsuit.
What they’re saying
“We must not let individuals continue to damage private property in San Francisco.”
— Robert Jenkins, San Francisco resident (San Francisco Chronicle)
What’s next
The trial is anticipated to run into March, and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is expected to testify. Kaley herself is also expected to take the stand, where she will describe how she believes the apps fueled her depression and suicidal thoughts.
The takeaway
This landmark trial could reshape how responsibility is assigned to Big Tech companies for the impact of their platforms on young users, potentially opening the door to a new wave of litigation claiming social media platforms are inherently dangerous due to how they function.
