Snap Inc. has settled a lawsuit alleging its Snapchat platform was designed to be addictive and caused mental health harm to a young user. The agreement was reached just days before the case was scheduled to become the first of thousands of similar lawsuits against major social media companies to go to trial. The terms of the settlement have not been publicly disclosed.
The trial was considered a bellwether, with its outcome potentially influencing the direction of a wave of litigation brought by teenagers, school districts, and attorneys general. While Snap has resolved this specific case, the company remains a defendant in hundreds of other lawsuits consolidated in federal court that make similar allegations. The trial against other defendants, including Meta (Instagram), ByteDance (TikTok), and Alphabet (YouTube), is expected to proceed.