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Instagram chief Adam Mosseri on Wednesday pushed back on claims the platform is dangerously addictive, reportedly telling jurors in a high-profile Los Angeles trial that using the app is more comparable to binge-watching Netflix than suffering from clinical addiction.

Mosseri, who has led Instagram since 2018, drew a distinction between clinical addiction and what he described as “problematic use,” the New York Post reported.

“I think it’s important to differentiate between clinical addiction and problematic use,” Mosseri said. “I’m sure I said that I’ve been addicted to a Netflix show when I binged it really late one night, but I don’t think it’s the same thing as clinical addiction.”

Mosseri testified as part of a lawsuit brought by a California woman who said she began using Instagram at age 9 and later struggled with depression and body dysmorphia. 

STANFORD PSYCHIATRIST TESTIFIES IN CALIFORNIA TRIAL THAT SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS ARE DESIGNED TO BE ADDICTIVE

Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri reportedly compared platform use to binge-watching Netflix in court. (Apu Gomes/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)

She is suing Meta and Google’s YouTube, alleging the companies knowingly hooked young users despite being aware of potential mental health risks, Reuters reported.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is expected to take the stand in the coming weeks.

The case is widely viewed as a test of federal legal protections that shield social media companies from liability over user-generated content. The outcome could influence hundreds of similar lawsuits across the country, according to Reuters.

Mosseri was also grilled about Instagram’s beauty filters and whether they promote unrealistic appearance standards, the New York Post reported.

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“I’m sure I said that I’ve been addicted to a Netflix show when I binged it really late one night,” Mosseri said, “but I don’t think it’s the same thing as clinical addiction.” (Mona Edwards/Reuters / Reuters)

“There’s always a trade-off between safety and speech,” Mosseri said. “We’re trying to be as safe as possible and censor as little as possible.”

Emails from 2019 presented in court show debate over whether to lift a ban on filters that mimic plastic surgery. Instagram’s policy, communications and well-being teams supported keeping the ban in place, Reuters reported.

Mosseri and Zuckerberg supported restoring the filters but removing them from recommendations, an option described internally as posing a “notable well-being risk” while limiting the impact on growth, according to Reuters.

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The case is widely viewed as a test of protections shielding social media companies from user-generated content-related lawsuits. (Jens Büttner/picture alliance via Getty Images / Getty Images)

“I was trying to balance all the different considerations,” Mosseri said.

Meta has said the central question in the case is whether Instagram was a substantial factor in the plaintiff’s mental health struggles.

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“The evidence will show she faced many significant, difficult challenges well before she ever used social media,” a Meta spokesperson said Tuesday.

Meta did not immediately respond to FOX Business’ request for comment.

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Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Seeking Alpha’s Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.