The Algorithmic Trap: AI Designs And Addiction In Children

The Algorithmic Trap: AI Designs and Addiction in children

Introduction

In March 2026, in California, a Los Angeles jury in the case of K.G.M. v. Meta Platforms, Inc., found Meta and Google liable for a young woman’s depression and suicidal thoughts after she claimed that she became addictive to social media platforms at 9-years. The jury found Meta Platforms and Google liable for the depression, anxiety, body image disorders, and suicidal ideation suffered by a young woman who had become addicted to Instagram and YouTube from the age of nine. The jury awarded USD 3 million in damages, Meta bearing 70% of responsibility, Google the remaining 30%.¹

The verdict marked a turning point. For the first time, a jury accepted the proposition at the heart of a growing global movement: the harm arose not from the content users posted, but from the platforms’ own engineering, from infinite scroll, autoplay, algorithmic recommendation, notification architecture, and engagement optimisation