Infinite scroll and engagement maximizing algorithms are the nicotine.

I'm continuously shocked at how addictive phones can be for some people. There seems to be something about the form factor. Laptops and desktops don't do it the same way. Something about that touch screen in your pocket and your hand that you can just grab and scroll and get dopamine hits is really intense.

I have for a while called social media the "tobacco companies of the mind."

Social belongs in quotes too. As social media has evolved it has become progressively less social, less about communication and connecting people, and more just a crowdsourced chum factory built around addiction. Do Instagram or TikTok even have a concept of a social connection? Do people actually use these to talk to their friends?