A courtroom in California is about to take on Big Tech — and the stakes couldn’t be higher.
On Tuesday, a landmark trial kicks off that asks a question many parents, teens and lawmakers have been quietly wondering for years.
Are social media platforms deliberately designed to be addictive?
The case was brought by a 19-year-old woman, known in court as KGM.
She says social media algorithms pulled her into compulsive use and damaged her mental health.
She’s suing Meta, Google and TikTok’s parent company ByteDance. Snapchat has already settled. That alone raises eyebrows.
This isn’t about what users post. It’s about how platforms work.
The endless scroll. The notifications. The algorithms that decide what keeps you hooked.
KGM’s lawyer, Matthew Bergman, puts it bluntly: these are “dangerous and addictive algorithms” that put profits before young people’s wellbeing.
Big Tech On Trial
Tech companies push back hard. They argue there’s no proven link between their products and conditions like depression or eating disorders.
And they lean on Section 230 — a decades-old law that has long shielded platforms from liability.
But legal experts say this case could crack that defence wide open.
Jurors are expected to see internal company documents, and Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg is set to testify.
“Executives are often not good under pressure,” one law professor noted — which may explain why companies tried to avoid this moment.
With governments worldwide tightening the screws, this trial may mark a turning point.
The real question is: once the curtain is pulled back, can Big Tech still claim it’s not responsible for the way its products shape young lives?
