Meta Platforms, Alphabet, and ByteDance face a landmark trial in Los Angeles. The lawsuit alleges the companies deliberately designed their platforms to be addictive to children.
Plaintiffs accuse the social media giants of causing severe mental harm to young users, including depression and eating disorders. The trial is considered a bellwether case. Its outcome could influence numerous similar lawsuits across the United States.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is expected to be called as a witness. Separately, Meta contends with a recently filed class-action lawsuit. This suit alleges the company misleads users about the privacy of WhatsApp's end-to-end encryption.
Meta strongly refuted the claims, calling them frivolous. These legal challenges increase scrutiny ahead of the company's quarterly earnings report, scheduled for release later in the week. Investors focus on AI-related capital expenditures.