California v. Meta: Trial opens on COPPA violations and addictive design claims

Opening statements in Oakland detailed the states' 'hook, hold, harvest, hide' framework. California attorney Megan O'Neill presented internal evidence that Instagram and Facebook algorithms prioritized engagement metrics over age verification. Former Meta safety engineer Arturo Béjar testified that his 2009-2021 tenure revealed repeated suppression of reports on teen harm, including his daughter's experience, directly contradicting public claims of proactive safety tools.

Data from prior cases shows a pattern. Meta lost a March 2025 New Mexico trial with a near-$1bn verdict for enabling child exploitation and a separate $4m+ personal injury judgment for deliberate addiction design. The company reported disabling over 1m under-13 accounts annually yet faces documented evidence of persistent account creation via minimal friction flows.

Operational impact centers on product architecture. Forced changes to recommendation systems and data collection could reduce session time metrics that drive 2025 revenue. The jury's advisory role leaves final rulings to Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, whose prior tech cases indicate scrutiny of internal metrics over marketing statements.

Next phase includes expected testimony from Mark Zuckerberg and Adam Mosseri within the six-to-eight-week schedule. Additional state suits already filed total thousands, with discovery overlap likely to surface further internal documents on age-gating failures.