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Although Google was named as a defendant, much of the trial centered on Instagram and Meta’s practices.

Snap and TikTok were initially included in the case but reached confidential settlements with Kaley before the trial began.

Attorneys for Kaley argued that Meta and YouTube created "addiction machines" and failed to adequately prevent underage users from accessing their platforms.

Kaley testified that she began using Instagram at age nine and YouTube at age six, encountering no barriers tied to her age.

"I stopped engaging with family because I was spending all my time on social media," Kaley said during her testimony.

She told jurors she began experiencing anxiety and depression at age 10, conditions she was later formally diagnosed with by a therapist.

Kaley also described developing an intense focus on her appearance, frequently using Instagram filters that altered her features — shrinking her nose and enlarging her eyes — soon after joining the platform.

She has since been diagnosed with body dysmorphia, a condition that distorts a person’s perception of their appearance.

Her legal team contended that features such as infinite scrolling were intentionally designed to keep users engaged.

They also argued that Meta’s growth strategy targeted younger audiences, citing testimony from experts and former executives who said younger users were more likely to remain long-term.

When Kaley’s attorneys highlighted that she once spent 16 hours in a single day on Instagram, Instagram head Adam Mosseri rejected the idea that it demonstrated addiction.

Instead, he called a teenager spending most hours of the day on Instagram "problematic".

Kaley’s lawyers said Wednesday that the outcome "sends an unmistakable message that no company is above accountability when it comes to our children."

Another lawsuit alleging harm to children from social media platforms is scheduled to begin in June in federal court in California.