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Instagram tracked the time users spent on its app, with company executives flagging \u201cmilestones\u201d that its app reached year after year. The app\u2019s daily usage grew from 40 minutes per day in 2023 to 46 minutes per day in 2026, according to documentation revealed during CEO Mark Zuckerberg\u2019s testimony in a state court case proceeding that took place in Los Angeles County Superior Court in February.<\/p>\n
The focus on time-spent metrics is a key factor in the lawsuit, which is one of Zuckerberg\u2019s rare<\/a> appearances before a jury.<\/p>\n In K.G.M. v. Platforms et al., now underway in L.A. County\u2019s Superior Court, a jury will determine whether social media companies are liable for youth mental health issues caused by their platforms or their addictive designs. Snap and TikTok settled before the trial\u2019s start, but executives from the other defendants, Meta and YouTube, are providing testimony as part of the trial.<\/p>\n The 19-year-old plaintiff in the case, who goes by the initials K.G.M. or \u201cKaley,\u201d says that using social media at a young age was harmful to her mental health, leading her to become addicted to the technology and develop depression, including thoughts of suicide.<\/p>\n Meta disputes that its app is responsible for Kaley\u2019s troubles.<\/p>\n \u201cThe question for the jury in Los Angeles is whether Instagram was a substantial factor in the plaintiff\u2019s mental health struggles. The evidence will show she faced many significant, difficult challenges well before she ever used social media,\u201d said Meta spokesperson Stephanie Otway in an emailed statement about the case.<\/p>\n Lawyers for the plaintiffs are hoping to prove that Meta set goals internally to increase the time users spent on Instagram, despite knowing there were minors on the platform. In Zuckerberg\u2019s testimony, he was pressed on why he told Congress in 2024 that children under 13 were not allowed on Instagram, when internal documents showed that the company knew of some 4 million children under 13 on the app back in 2015. The document also noted this figure represented 30% of all 10- to 12-year-olds in the U.S.<\/p>\n Zuckerberg pushed back at the line of questioning, saying that he answered the question in Congress honestly by stating the company\u2019s policy, and noted that Instagram removed the underage users it found. He also attempted to clarify that the \u201cmilestones\u201d the company had tracked were not the same thing as specific \u201cgoals\u201d that Instagram\u2019s team was tasked to achieve.<\/p>\n However, other documents the plaintiff\u2019s legal team referenced during his testimony pointed to Instagram\u2019s growing interest in the tween and teen demographic, with emails written by a former product manager even going so far as to say, \u201cOur overall company goal is total teen time spent,\u201d and that \u201cMark has decided that the top priority for the company in the first half of 2017 is teens.\u201d Another market landscape in December 2018 also found that tweens were the \u201chighest retention age group\u201d in the U.S., suggesting the company was interested in the demographic. <\/p>\n Another email, penned by Zuckerberg adviser Nick Clegg, who left the company last year<\/a>, pointed out that Instagram\u2019s age requirements were basically \u201cunenforceable.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite knowing there were underage users on its platform, Instagram didn\u2019t take action to address its existing underage users until August 2021,<\/a> when it began requiring users to enter their birthdays, the plaintiff\u2019s lawyers argued. (Meta responded that it began asking for ages at sign-up in 2019<\/a> for new users, though.)<\/p>\n Though Instagram has more recently rolled out a series of teen protections and parental controls, its focus on the young demographic remains. Other internal documentation referenced in this testimony indicated that Meta\u2019s current hope is for Instagram to be the largest teen destination by monthly active users in the U.S. and globally this year. <\/p>\n If you or someone you know is considering suicide or needs to talk, there are people who want to help. Call or text 988 to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.<\/em> <\/p>\n This article was corrected after publication to note that it is not Zuckerberg\u2019s first appearance before a jury, as he previously appeared<\/a> in a trial focused on Meta\u2019s VR technology. <\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n