A 20-year-old woman identified by her initials KGM testified in a trial against Meta and YouTube, alleging she became addicted to social media as a child and that it contributed to serious mental health issues. The story was detailed by The Guardian as part of a broader set of lawsuits accusing platforms of designing products to keep young users hooked.
KGM told a Los Angeles county superior court that she began using YouTube at age six and joined Instagram when she was nine. She testified that by age 10 she was experiencing depression and engaging in self-harm, and said features such as beauty filters worsened anxiety and insecurity about her appearance.
She also said she still struggles to be without social media and described panic when her mother tried to take her phone away. KGM testified that the cycle of use affected relationships at home and with friends, and that she experienced suicidal thoughts while cutting herself as a way to cope with depression.
Her testimony centers on design features meant to keep kids engaged
KGM’s legal team argues that elements such as infinite scroll and video autoplay are built to maximize time on the apps. Broader tech scrutiny has also grown around corporate promises, including Anthropic AI safety backpedal. They also pointed to “like” buttons as a feature that can amplify teens’ desire for validation, and compared the claims to arguments made in lawsuits against tobacco companies in the 1990s.
The case is the first of more than 20 bellwether trials intended to test how juries respond and what verdicts could look like. It is part of a larger group of cases against Meta, TikTok, YouTube, and Snap involving more than 1,600 plaintiffs, including over 350 families and 250 school districts. TikTok and Snap were originally named in KGM’s case but settled shortly before trial, and the terms were not made public.
Meta and YouTube deny wrongdoing. Separate reporting has tracked the expansion of surveillance tech, including Flock surveillance cameras backlash. A YouTube spokesperson, José Castañeda, called the allegations “simply not true” and said providing young people with a safer, healthier experience has been central to the company’s work.
Meta argued in a brief that KGM’s mental health struggles were worsened by a difficult home life, and spokesperson Liza Crenshaw said the evidence would show KGM faced significant challenges before she used social media. KGM testified that her mother had occasionally been abusive and hit her, while also describing her as a loving parent who worked hard to raise three children.
She said she still lives with her mother and works as a personal shopper. Other witnesses have testified or are expected to testify, including KGM’s former therapist, Victoria Burke, who said she worked with KGM when she was 13 and 14 and diagnosed her with body dysmorphic disorder and social phobia.
Burke testified that KGM sometimes used her phone to appear busy rather than seem as if she had no friends, and said social media was a contributing factor to her mental health issues. KGM’s mother, Karen, and a child and adolescent psychiatrist, Kara Bagot, are expected to testify soon, and Mark Zuckerberg, Adam Mosseri, and Cristos Goodrow have testified over the past couple of weeks.
The trial began in late January and is expected to continue for another two to four weeks.
Published: Feb 27, 2026 10:15 am