Millions of teenagers could soon see fundamental changes to how they interact on Instagram and Facebook, as Meta faces a landmark jury trial in California that could dismantle core features of modern social media.
The trial stems from a major lawsuit filed in 2023 by 30 US states, including California and New York. The states are seeking more than $1 trillion in damages and demanding comprehensive alterations to Meta's platforms to address what legal filings describe as a growing youth mental health crisis.
At the center of the dispute are features long considered integral to the social media experience. State attorneys argue that infinite scroll, "like" counts, autoplaying videos, appearance-altering filters, and disappearing posts are engineered to exploit young users by triggering dopamine responses. Combined with recommendation algorithms and persistent notifications, these design choices allegedly lock teenagers into addictive usage patterns while making it difficult for them to leave the platforms.
Court filings cite internal Meta research indicating that metrics such as like counts drive negative social comparison, which was linked to increased loneliness, worse body image, and depressive moods among young users. Former user testimony in related cases detailed how children created multiple accounts to boost their own engagement scores in a bid for peer validation.
The suing states are urging Chief Federal Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers to require parental verification, disable infinite scrolling, ban multiple account creation, and remove appearance-altering filters on accounts used by teenagers.
Meta has consistently denied the allegations, maintaining that it has a longstanding commitment to supporting young people and expressing confidence that evidence presented during the trial will vindicate its safety measures. If the court rules against the tech giant, however, the verdict could permanently reshape how social media operates for younger generations.