Instagram, YouTube addiction trial kicks off in Los Angeles

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Instagram, YouTube addiction trial kicks off in Los Angeles Instagram, YouTube addiction trial kicks off in Los Angeles | Picture uploaded on Latesttechnewshub

By Jody Godoy: LOS ANGELES, Feb 9 – The California state court started the trial which examines social media platforms’ liability for mental health damage caused by their addictive design elements on Monday. The case could become a turning point for how Big Tech companies are legally treated in lawsuits involving children and young users.

The 20-year-old woman K.G.M. who filed the lawsuit claims that Instagram and YouTube caused her mental health problems during her adolescence. She is suing Meta Platforms which owns Facebook and Instagram and Google which owns YouTube.

The court documents show that K.G.M. claims the platforms were built to make users stay online which led to her developing an addiction when she was still a child. She claims that continuous exposure to the content resulted in her developing depression and suicidal thoughts, and she believes that the companies should have informed users about these dangers.

Why This Case Matters

The jury’s verdict against Meta and Google would create a legal pathway for countless other lawsuits which will be filed throughout the United States. Tech companies have long relied on legal protections that shield them from responsibility for content posted by users. A rejection of that defense in this case could significantly weaken that shield—especially when claims focus on product design rather than user content.

Meta, Google, TikTok, and Snap are currently dealing with multiple lawsuits in California which include many cases filed by parents, school districts, and state authorities.

How the Tech Giants Are Defending Themselves

Meta and Google will argue that K.G.M. suffered from mental health problems due to factors that had nothing to do with social media platforms. The company intends to showcase their safety initiatives for young people while denying responsibility for dangerous user-generated content.

Internet companies can avoid liability for third-party content according to existing U.S. laws. The plaintiffs claim that their issue stems from the apps’ design which promotes compulsive usage rather than what users actually posted online.

Broader Legal Pressure Is Building

Federal courts currently handle over 2,300 lawsuits which have similar claims to this state case. The judge handling those cases needs to decide whether the companies can use their liability protections. The first federal trial could begin as early as June.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg will testify at the California trial which is expected to last until March. K.G.M. has settled with TikTok and Snap who were involved in the case but now they have exited the legal proceedings.

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What the Jury Will Decide

The plaintiff’s legal team will prove that the companies were negligent and lacked proper user warnings and their platforms caused significant damage to users. The jury will determine damages for pain and suffering along with possible punitive damages if the plaintiffs win their case.

A Global Backlash Against Social Media

This case is part of a broader global push to regulate social media’s impact on children’s mental health. Australia and Spain have implemented social media access restrictions for users under 16 years old while other countries are considering similar actions.

The New Mexico state attorney general has accused Meta of enabling child sexual exploitation while making profits from such activities which will face legal action because of a separate high-profile trial that started Monday in Santa Fe.

The outcome of the Los Angeles trial will create a major shift in social media companies’ accountability because the worldwide legal investigations of social media companies are becoming more intense.

(Reporting at Reuters by Jody Godoy in Los Angeles, Courtney Rozen in Washington and Diana Novak Jones in Chicago; Editing by David Gregorio.)

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❓ FAQs

Q1: What is the Instagram and YouTube addiction trial about?
The trial examines whether Instagram and YouTube caused mental health harm through addictive app design, especially among young users.

Q2: Who filed the lawsuit?
A 20-year-old woman, identified as K.G.M., filed the case against Meta (Instagram) and Google (YouTube).

Q3: Why is this trial important?
A ruling against the companies could allow many similar lawsuits and challenge long-standing legal protections for tech platforms.

Q4: What harm does the plaintiff claim?
She alleges that excessive use of the platforms contributed to depression and suicidal thoughts during her teenage years.

Q5: How are Meta and Google defending themselves?
They argue other life factors played a role and highlight their efforts to improve youth safety on their platforms.

Q6: Could this affect other social media companies?
Yes. A verdict against Meta and Google could impact ongoing lawsuits involving TikTok, Snap, and other platforms.

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Snapchat now lets you inform others when you have arrived at your destination

Updated 3 hours ago 3 minutes of read Views: 13

Snapchat now lets you inform others when you have arrived at your destination Snapchat now lets you inform others when you have arrived at your destination | Picture uploaded on Latesttechnewshub

The company has introduced its new location-sharing capability, which enables users to send automatic arrival notifications to their contacts when they visit any location except their home address.

The platform introduced its Arrival Notifications feature on Monday after launching its Home Safe alert system which enables users to create one-time or repeated arrival notifications for their chosen destinations.

Users can create arrival alerts through Arrival Notifications for their common destinations which include their school, work meetings, exercise sessions, and hotel stays. The Snapchat feature automatically informs a designated friend about the user’s arrival at their destination once the user activates it.

The Snapchat feature enables users to establish contact with others about their safe arrival home from trips and their return to scheduled weekly functions. The company shared in a blog post that the goal is to make check-ins effortless and stress-free. Privacy Still Comes First.

The user must select which friends to share their location with before they can access the Arrival Notifications feature which functions like Home Safe. A user must permit the disclosure of their location through Snap Map because the service operates with location sharing turned off until they allow specific people to see their whereabouts. The system provides one-time notifications, which become invalid after distribution or after a period of 24 hours.

How to Set Up Arrival Notifications

Users need to share their real-time location with a trusted buddy before they can access the feature. They must navigate to the friendship profile where they can select Arrival Notifications to mark their arrival at a specific location through the map interface.

Users can modify locations by using custom labels that include options like “run club,” “office,” or “piano class.” Users can then choose whether to send the alert as a one-time notification or to schedule it for automatic future delivery.

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Snap Map Continues to Grow

The company announced that Snap Map has surpassed 400 million active monthly users in Snapchat, showing its increasing significance to the application. The original Snap Map launch in 2017 enabled users to track their friends’ locations while discovering public snaps from global locations for viewing. The platform has transformed into a discovery tool which assists users in locating nearby entertainment venues and local activities.

Snapchat expands its features with Home Safe and Arrival Notifications to establish itself as a competitor against location-sharing platforms like Life360 and Apple’s Find My while maintaining its commitment to user privacy.

(Reporting at TechCrunch by Aisha Malik – Consumer News Reporter)

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❓ FAQs

Q1: What are Snapchat Arrival Notifications?
Arrival Notifications let users automatically inform friends when they reach a selected destination.

Q2: How is this different from Snapchat’s Home Safe feature?
Home Safe alerts only notify when you arrive home, while Arrival Notifications work for any chosen location.

Q3: Can anyone see my location with this feature?
No. Location sharing is off by default and only works with friends you choose to share your location with.

Q4: Are Arrival Notifications one-time or recurring?
Users can choose either a one-time alert or a recurring notification for regular places.

Q5: How long do one-time alerts last?
One-time notifications expire after they are sent or automatically after 24 hours.

Q6: Does this feature work through Snap Map?
Yes. Arrival Notifications are part of Snap Map and require location sharing to be enabled.

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Snap forecasts quarterly revenue below estimates as ad competition hurts

Updated 3 hours ago 3 minutes of read Views: 38

Snap forecasts quarterly revenue below estimates as ad competition hurts Snap forecasts quarterly revenue below estimates as ad competition hurts | Picture uploaded on Latesttechnewshub

Snap Inc. announced that its first-quarter revenue will fall short of what Wall Street had predicted because the company now faces stronger competition from major digital advertising companies which include Meta’s Facebook and Instagram.

The parent company of Snapchat has faced multiple difficulties during the past year because of changing U.S. trade regulations established by President Donald Trump and because of problems with its advertising system. These problems caused a major loss of trust among investors which resulted in Snap’s stock price dropping about 25% during 2025.

Advertisers now choose platforms that offer extensive worldwide accessibility which makes companies like Meta and TikTok their top choice because those platforms have more users. Snap showed positive trends in its advertising division despite facing tough competition from other companies. The company reported that its total active advertisers grew by 28% during the fourth quarter because of strong demand for direct response ads and newly introduced formats which included Sponsored Snaps and Promoted Places.

Snap announced that it has implemented platform-level age verification in Australia to meet new regulations which require users to be at least 16 years old. The platform removed more than 400,000 accounts as a result of this action.

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Snap predicts its first quarter revenue will fall between $1.50 billion and $1.53 billion which represents a decrease from analysts’ forecasted average of $1.55 billion according to LSEG data.

The company does not include Perplexity revenue which stems from a $400 million partnership that was revealed last year in its revenue projections. Snap stated that both companies have not yet settled on a complete distribution plan.

Snap expected its current quarter adjusted EBITDA to exceed market predictions. The company forecasts earnings between $170 million and $190 million which will exceed analyst projections of $177.9 million because it is focusing on stricter cost management and profitability.

Snap achieved a net income of $45 million during the fourth quarter which represents a major increase from the $9 million earned in the same period last year. The company reduced its total net loss for 2025 to $460 million which is an improvement from the previous year when it lost $698 million.

The company is expanding into new business areas which go beyond its core advertising operations. Snap has established its independent unit Specs to develop augmented reality smart glasses while continuing to create new revenue streams through its Snapchat+ subscription service. The number of service subscribers increased by 71% reaching 24 million during the fourth quarter.

Daily active Snapchat users increased by 5% from the previous year to reach 474 million while the company lost 3 million users since the last quarter.

The quarterly revenue which ended on December 31 increased by 10% to reach $1.72 billion which surpassed the analyst forecast of $1.70 billion.

This reporting is by Jaspreet Singh in Bengaluru and Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri from reuters.

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❓ FAQs

Q1: Why did Snap forecast revenue below Wall Street estimates?
Snap expects lower first-quarter revenue due to intense competition for digital advertising dollars from larger platforms like Meta’s Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.

Q2: Is Snap’s advertising business still growing?
Yes. Despite revenue pressure, Snap reported a 28% increase in active advertisers in the fourth quarter, driven by direct response ads and newer formats such as Sponsored Snaps.

Q3: What impact did Australia’s age verification rules have on Snap?
Snap implemented platform-level age verification in Australia to comply with new regulations, which resulted in the removal of more than 400,000 accounts.

Q4: How is Snap improving profitability?
The company is focusing on tighter cost controls and operational efficiency, leading to an adjusted EBITDA forecast that is above analyst expectations for the current quarter.

Q5: What new revenue streams is Snap focusing on?
Snap is diversifying beyond ads by investing in augmented reality smart glasses through its Specs unit and expanding its Snapchat+ subscription service, which now has 24 million subscribers.

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Exclusive: Amazon Plans to Use AI to Speed Up TV and Film Production

Updated 5 days ago 4 minutes of read Views: 18

Exclusive Amazon Plans to Use AI to Speed Up TV and Film Production Exclusive Amazon Plans to Use AI to Speed Up TV and Film Production | Picture uploaded on Latesttechnewshub

Amazon will utilise AI technology to enhance the production speed of television shows and movies, according to this exclusive report. Amazon will implement artificial intelligence technology throughout Hollywood to improve movie and television production times, while the industry faces work disruption threats from this technology.

Albert Cheng who has worked in the industry for many years about Amazon MGM Studios leads the team which develops AI tools to decrease production expenses and improve creative processes. The company will begin its closed beta testing program in March 2023 by allowing selected industry partners to evaluate the tools until they achieve their first results in May.

Cheng describes the initiative, known internally as AI Studio, as a small, agile operation that follows the Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ two-pizza team method by containing enough members to eat only two pizzas. The team consists of engineers and scientists who receive support from a small creative and business division.

The public AI initiatives of Amazon occur during a period when increasing production costs restrict studios from approving more projects. The company uses AI to automate and speed up particular filmmaking processes, which results in increased content production at a lower creative impact.

“The cost of creating is so high that it’s really hard to make more and really hard to take great risks,” Cheng said. “AI can speed things up according to our beliefs but it needs human inventiveness to create special storytelling which leads to outstanding results.”

The Hollywood community experiences anxiety because of this decision. High-profile actors including Emily Blunt have expressed their worries about the increased use of AI especially with the creation of AI-generated performers which jeopardises traditional acting roles.

Amazon demonstrates that its AI technology exists to support human staff instead of replacing them. AI will assist writers, directors, actors, and character designers as they create their work throughout production.

Like many tech giants, Amazon has been pushing nearly every business unit to explore AI use cases. The company has also cited AI-driven efficiencies as one factor behind its decision to cut around 30,000 corporate jobs since October, including roles at Prime Video.

According to Cheng, AI could help solve some of the biggest challenges in large-scale film and TV production.

The focus area he addresses involves the “last mile” which connects consumer AI technologies with filmmakers’ cinematic content accuracy requirements. The system requires character continuity through scene,s while it must work together with common creative software in the film industry.

The tools operated by Amazon Web Services (AWS) give Amazon capabilities that will enable the business to work with various language model creators, who will provide original content makers the ability to work during both pre-production and post-production periods. The studio prioritises two objectives, which include safeguarding intellectual property and stopping AI-created materials from being used in external systems.

The AI Studio is already collaborating with notable industry figures, including producer Robert Stromberg (Maleficent) and his company Secret City, actor Kunal Nayyar (The Big Bang Theory) through Good Karma Productions, and former Pixar and Industrial Light & Magic animator Colin Brady.

Launched last August, the studio points to its series “House of David” as a glimpse into AI’s future role in filmmaking. For the show’s second season, director Jon Erwin combined AI-generated visuals with live-action footage to create large-scale battle scenes, seamlessly blending both elements to expand the scope of the production at a lower cost.

As Amazon moves forward, the company believes AI could become a powerful tool in reshaping how stories are brought to the screen—while keeping human creativity at the center of the process.

This Reporting is by Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles and Greg Bensinger in San Francisco Editing by Nick Zieminski from reuters.

❓ FAQs

Q1: Why is Amazon using AI in movie and TV production?
Amazon is adopting AI to reduce rising production costs and speed up time-consuming processes. The goal is to make it easier to produce more films and shows while keeping budgets under control.

Q2: Will AI replace writers, actors, or directors at Amazon?
No. Amazon has stated that AI will be used as a supportive tool, not a replacement. Writers, actors, directors, and designers will remain involved at every stage of production, with AI enhancing creativity rather than replacing human talent.

Q3: What is Amazon’s AI Studio?
AI Studio is a small, specialized team within Amazon MGM Studios focused on building AI tools for filmmaking. It operates like a startup, following Amazon’s “two-pizza team” philosophy to stay agile and innovative.

Q4: How is AI being used in real productions already?
Amazon points to its series House of David as an early example. AI was combined with live-action footage to create large-scale battle scenes, helping expand visual scope while keeping costs lower.

Q5: When will these AI tools be available to creators?
Amazon plans to launch a closed beta program in March, allowing select industry partners to test the tools. Initial results and feedback are expected to be shared by May.

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