‘The Young Ones Are the Best Ones’: Meta Accused of Putting Profit Before Children in $200BN Case

Lawyers for 29 US states have accused Meta of hiding its own findings that Instagram is addictive to teens. Opening a high-stakes trial in a packed courtroom on Tuesday, state prosecutors argued that executives knew the app was causing real harm to young users, yet chose to bury the evidence.

'I heard from many of you at jury selection that the health and wellbeing of kids is a shared responsibility,' said Megan O'Neill, a deputy attorney general for California, in her opening statement. 'Meta didn't do its share.'

Addressing the jury, O'Neill outlined what the coming trial would uncover, promising a clear look at witness testimony alongside internal company documents gathered during state investigations.

Damning Internal Files Revealed

She pointed to an internal file claiming 'the young ones are the best ones', alongside another document in which Meta acknowledged: 'Teens are hooked despite how it makes them feel. Instagram is addictive.'

'They knew,' O'Neill said. 'Time and again, profits won.'

The legal action targets the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, alleging it intentionally built features that hook young users and harm their mental health.

Top Executives Set to Testify

The six-to-eight-week trial in Oakland federal court will feature testimony from Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg, Instagram head Adam Mosseri and other key leaders. Following Tuesday's opening arguments, prosecutors called whistleblower Arturo Béjar as their first witness.

First filed in October 2023, the 233-page lawsuit alleges Meta illegally harvests data from children under 13 without parental consent and 'refuses to abandon its use of known harmful features' solely to 'maximize its financial gains'.

A coalition of 29 state attorneys general brought the joint suit as part of multidistrict litigation, with legal teams from California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey taking the lead in presenting the case in court.

Staggering $200bn Financial Threat

This high-stakes court battle could deal a significant blow to the social media giant. Should Meta lose, state officials warn penalties could reach an eye-watering $200 billion (£146.97 billion), a figure matching its entire annual revenue for 2025.

Crucially, lawmakers are also demanding mandatory overhauls to product features to protect children, a structural change that could potentially inflict far greater long-term damage than any cash fine.

Meta Pushes Back Against Allegations

Defence attorney Paul Schmidt pushed back against the claims, insisting that the prosecution had selectively quoted internal emails and documents out of context.

Addressing the jury, he maintained that Meta's research on teenagers was conducted specifically to figure out how best to support young people on its platforms.

Schmidt told the court that Meta has shut down more than one million accounts belonging to children under 13, maintaining that the company is taking concrete steps to keep underage users off its platforms.

A Meta spokesperson dismissed the case as an attempt to 'chase an outlandish payout', adding: 'The state AGs may call this a landmark case, but their limited claims are unsubstantiated and their financial demands are vastly disproportionate.'

Accusations of Psychological Manipulation

State officials counter this defence, asserting that Meta systematically designed and honed features to manipulate users psychologically and keep them hooked on its platforms.

Among the targeted features are endless-scroll algorithms, persistent notifications, 'like' buttons and image-altering filters.