LOS ANGELES (AP) — Adam Mosseri, the head of Meta's Instagram, testified Wednesday during a landmark social media trial in Los Angeles that he disagrees with the idea that people can be clinically addicted to social media platforms.
The question of addiction is a key pillar of the case, where plaintiffs seek to hold social media companies responsible for harms to children who use their platforms. Meta Platforms and Google's YouTube are the two remaining defendants in the case, which TikTok and Snap have settled.
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Adam Mosseri, CEO of Instagram, arrives in court to testify in a landmark social media case that seeks to hold tech companies responsible for harms to children, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Adam Mosseri, CEO of Instagram, arrives in court to testify in a landmark social media case that seeks to hold tech companies responsible for harms to children, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Adam Mosseri, CEO of Instagram, arrives in court to testify in a landmark social media case that seeks to hold tech companies responsible for harms to children, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Adam Mosseri, CEO of Instagram, arrives in court to testify in a landmark social media case that seeks to hold tech companies responsible for harms to children, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
At the core of the Los Angeles case is a 20-year-old identified only by the initials “KGM,” whose lawsuit could determine how thousands of similar lawsuits against social media companies would play out. She and two other plaintiffs have been selected for bellwether trials — essentially test cases for both sides to see how their arguments play out before a jury.
Mosseri, who's headed Instagram since 2018 said it’s important to differentiate between clinical addiction and what he called problematic use. The plaintiff's lawyer, however, presented quotes directly from Mosseri in a podcast interview a few years ago where he used the term addiction in relation to social media use, but he clarified that he was probably using the term "too casually,” as people tend to do.
Mosseri said he was not claiming to be a medical expert when questioned about his qualifications to comment on the legitimacy of social media addiction, but said someone “very close” to him has experienced serious clinical addiction, which is why he said he was “being careful with my words.”
He said he and his colleagues use the term “problematic use” to refer to “someone spending more time on Instagram than they feel good about, and that definitely happens.”
It’s “not good for the company, over the long run, to make decisions that profit for us but are poor for people’s well-being," Mosseri said.
Mosseri and the plaintiff's lawyer, Mark Lanier, engaged in a lengthy back-and-forth about cosmetic filters on Instagram that changed people’s appearance in a way that seemed to promote plastic surgery.
“We are trying to be as safe as possible but also censor as little as possible," Mosseri said.
In the courtroom, bereaved parents of children who have had social media struggles seemed visibly upset during a discussion around body dysmorphia and cosmetic filters. Meta shut down all third-party augmented reality filters in January 2025. The judge made an announcement to members of the public on Wednesday after the displays of emotion, reminding them not to make any indication of agreement or disagreement with testimony, saying that it would be "improper to indicate some position.”
During cross examination, Mosseri and Meta lawyer Phyllis Jones tried to reframe the idea that Lanier was suggesting in his questioning that the company is looking to profit off of teens specifically.
Mosseri said Instagram makes “less money from teens than from any other demographic on the app,” noting that teens don’t tend to click on ads and many don’t have disposable income that they spend on products from ads they receive. During his opportunity to question Mosseri for a second time, Lanier was quick to point to research that shows people who join social media platforms at a young age are more likely to stay on the platforms longer, which he said makes teen users prime for meaningful long-term profit.
“Often people try to frame things as you either prioritize safety or you prioritize revenue,” Mosseri said. “It’s really hard to imagine any instance where prioritizing safety isn’t good for revenue.”
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is expected to take the stand next week.
In recent years, Instagram has added a slew of features and tools it says have made the platform safer for young people. But this does not always work. A report last year, for instance, found that teen accounts researchers created were recommended age-inappropriate sexual content, including “graphic sexual descriptions, the use of cartoons to describe demeaning sexual acts, and brief displays of nudity."
In addition, Instagram also recommended a “range of self-harm, self-injury, and body image content” on teen accounts that the report says “would be reasonably likely to result in adverse impacts for young people, including teenagers experiencing poor mental health, or self-harm and suicidal ideation and behaviors.” Meta called the report “misleading, dangerously speculative” and said it misrepresents its efforts on teen safety.
Meta is also facing a separate trial in New Mexico that began this week.
Adam Mosseri, CEO of Instagram, arrives in court to testify in a landmark social media case that seeks to hold tech companies responsible for harms to children, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Adam Mosseri, CEO of Instagram, arrives in court to testify in a landmark social media case that seeks to hold tech companies responsible for harms to children, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Adam Mosseri, CEO of Instagram, arrives in court to testify in a landmark social media case that seeks to hold tech companies responsible for harms to children, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Adam Mosseri, CEO of Instagram, arrives in court to testify in a landmark social media case that seeks to hold tech companies responsible for harms to children, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Connor Haught has been juggling virtual work meetings and arts and crafts projects for his two daughters as his family tries to navigate a teachers strike in San Francisco with no end date in sight.
Haught’s job in the construction industry allows him to work from home but, like many parents in the city, he and his wife were scrambling to plan activities for their children amid the uncertainty of a strike that has left nearly 50,000 students out of the classroom.
“The big concern for parents is really the timeline of it all and trying to prepare for how long this could go on,” Haught said.
The San Francisco Unified School District’s 120 schools remained closed for a third day Wednesday, after about 6,000 public schoolteachers went on strike over higher wages, health benefits, and more resources for students with special needs.
Some parents are taking advantage of after-school programs offering full-day programming during the strike, while others are relying on relatives and each other for help with child care.
Haught said he and his wife, who works evenings at a restaurant, planned to have their 8- and 9-year-old daughters at home the first week of the strike. They hope to organize play dates and local excursions with other families. They have not yet figured out what they will do if the strike goes on a second week.
“We didn’t try to jump on all the camps and things right away because they can be pricey, and we may be a little more fortunate with our schedule than some of the other people that are being impacted,” Haught said.
The United Educators of San Francisco and the district have been negotiating for nearly a year, with teachers demanding fully funded family health care, salary raises and the filling of vacant positions impacting special education and services.
On Wednesday, hundreds of teachers gathered at San Francisco's Ocean Beach to form the word “strike” in large letters as the two sides continued to negotiate over wages and health care. Schools will remain closed for a fourth day Thursday, the district announced.
Teachers on the picket lines said they know the strike is hard on students but that they walked out to offer children stability in the future.
“This is for the betterment of our students. We believe our students deserve to learn safely in schools, and that means having fully staffed schools. That means retaining teachers by offering them competitive wage packages and health care, and it means to fully fund all of the programs we know the students need the most,” said Lily Perales, a history teacher at Mission High School.
Earlier Wednesday, Superintendent Maria Su urged both sides to act with urgency, saying the district had a counterproposal ready Tuesday night and was prepared to stay all night, but that union negotiators had left for the day.
“We have been ready to negotiate his entire time. We are prepared and committed to getting this agreement done today,” she said at a morning press conference.
The two sides have yet to agree on a wage increase and family health benefits. The union initially asked for a 9% raise over two years, which they said could help offset the cost of living in San Francisco, one of the most expensive cities in the country. The district, which faces a $100 million deficit and is under state oversight because of a long-standing financial crisis, rejected the idea. Officials countered with a 6% wage increase paid over three years.
On Tuesday, Sonia Sanabria took her 5-year-old daughter and 11-year-old nephew to a church in the Mission District neighborhood that offered free lunch to children out of school.
Sanabria, who works as a cook at a restaurant, said she stayed home from work to take care of the children.
“If the strike continues, I’ll have to ask my job for a leave of absence, but it will affect me because if I don’t work, I don’t earn,” Sanabria said.
She said her elderly mother helps with school drop off and pick up but leaving the children with her all day is not an option. Sanabria said she has given them reading and writing assignments and worked with them on math problems. Sanabria said she is making plans for the children day-by-day and expressed support for the striking teachers.
“They are asking for better wages and better health insurance, and I think they deserve that because they teach our children, they take care of them and are helping them to have a better future,” she said, adding, “I just hope they reach agreement soon.”
Cynthia Harb, foreground left, a physical education teacher at Marina Middle School, and her husband, Gus, middle, rally in support of the ongoing teachers strike at the San Francisco Unified School District with other teachers, students and supporters at Ocean Beach in San Francisco, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Tylynn Lewis, teacher at Dr. Charles R. Drew Elementary School, middle, rallies in support of the ongoing teacher's strike at the San Francisco Unified School District with other teachers, students and supporters at Ocean Beach, in San Francisco, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Knick Pires, middle, whose wife teaches at Presidio Middle School, rallies with others in support of the ongoing teachers strike at the San Francisco Unified School District on Ocean Beach in San Francisco, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Teachers, students and supporters rally in support of the ongoing teachers strike at the San Francisco Unified School District at Ocean Beach in San Francisco, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Teachers, students and supporters rally in support of the ongoing teachers strike at the San Francisco Unified School District at Ocean Beach in San Francisco, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Hundreds of San Francisco teachers form a human banner spelling "STRIKE" on Ocean Beach on the third day of a district-wide strike over wages, benefits and other issues. (AP Photo/Terry Chea)
English and Physical Education teacher Alison White leads a chant as teachers and San Francisco Unified School District staff join a city-wide protest to demand a fair contract at Mission High School, Monday, Feb. 9, 2026, in San Francisco. (Brontë Wittpenn/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)
Teachers, students and supporters picket outside of Mission High School in San Francisco, Monday, Feb. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Bret Harte Elementary Stacey Gonzalez TK teacher reads a United Educators of San Francisco newspaper as Bret Harte Elementary School teachers and Untied Educators of San Francisco members strike outside of Bret Harte Elementary School in San Francisco, Calif., Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. (Jessica Christian/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)
Bret Harte Elementary kindergarten to second grade teacher Kalina Francois pushes her daughter Inayah, 1, in a stroller while joining Bret Harte Elementary School teachers and Untied Educators of San Francisco members in a strike outside of Bret Harte Elementary School in San Francisco, Calif., Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. (Jessica Christian/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)
Teachers, students and supporters picket outside of Mission High School in San Francisco, Monday, Feb. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
