Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom testified that his fledgling photo-sharing app could have succeeded without being acquired by Meta Platforms Inc., and that eventually Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg treated Instagram’s growth as a “threat” and starved it of resources.

Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom told a federal judge Tuesday that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg underinvested in the photo-sharing app after it was sold to Meta.

Systrom testified that Instagram had the potential to thrive independently and did not require Meta’s infrastructure or resources to scale.