Meta is in court over a $1.4 trillion claim that Instagram was built to hook kids, and this is the trial to watch

Meta is on trial for building products that state prosecutors say were designed to hook children, and the number attached to it, up to $1.4 trillion, is not a typo.

Opening statements began this week in Oakland's federal court, where 29 US state attorneys general, led by California's Rob Bonta, are arguing that Meta engineered Instagram and Facebook to be addictive to young people. Chief District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers is presiding over what is expected to be a six to eight week trial.

The states allege Meta built its platforms around features like recommendation algorithms, infinite scroll, likes and push notifications, knowing they exploit how a developing teenage brain responds to social feedback and reward. Prosecutors say internal research shows Meta understood these vulnerabilities and used them anyway. The lawsuit also claims Meta collected data on children under 13 without parental consent, a breach of US federal privacy law.

Four states are seeking damages as high as $1.4 trillion, though attorneys general have suggested in hearings the real figure could land closer to $200 billion. Either way, the states also want a court order forcing Meta to make structural changes nationwide, including tighter age restrictions and removing infinite scroll entirely.

Meta denies all of it. The company says prosecutors have not proven anyone was misled and argues it is being blamed for challenges the whole industry faces, particularly age verification, which no platform has solved cleanly. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram head Adam Mosseri are both expected to testify.

There is a direct Australian thread here. Since Australia's under-16 social media ban took effect on 10 December 2025, Meta says it has removed more than 750,000 accounts believed to belong to under-16s. But Australia's own eSafety Commissioner found more than eight in ten under-16s are still finding ways onto these platforms, raising real doubts about whether age bans work without genuine age verification. More than two dozen countries are now watching both the ban and this trial before deciding their own next move.

Whatever the jury decides, the outcome will shape how every social platform designs for young users from here. This is not a trial to skim past.