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Adam Mosseri Testifies as States Present Internal Evidence on Instagram’s Teen Safety

Court records and witness accounts showing weak safety-tool use and design choices raise the prospect of large penalties and forced changes to Facebook and Instagram.

Overview

  • The trial in Oakland entered a new phase Tuesday when Instagram head Adam Mosseri took the stand to respond to states' claims that the apps were designed to keep young people engaged.
  • Prosecutors introduced internal Meta documents showing very low teen uptake for safety features, citing 'Take a Break' at about 1.8 percent and 'Quiet Mode' at about 8.7 percent.
  • Former employees testified that leadership rejected turning safety settings on by default because doing so would reduce core engagement metrics that drive ad revenue.
  • The coalition of 29 states is seeking roughly $200 billion in civil penalties and structural remedies such as stricter age controls, data limits, and redesigns of autoplay and infinite scroll.
  • An eight-person advisory jury will issue nonbinding findings to guide U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, who will make the final decisions that could reshape platform design and affect users' daily experience.