Thread by @nytimes

Juul said its e-cigarette was meant to be a safer tobacco alternative — not hook a younger generation on nicotine.

But the reality inside Juul was different. Here's how decisions it made planted the seeds of a public health crisis that's hooked millions. nyti.ms/2QRblER

Under pressure from investors, Juul's own marketing diverged from its stated public health mission. It geared ads to those in their 20s and early 30s, a generation with historically low smoking rates.

Even some Juul employees were confused as young people flocked to the product.

In a 2015 board meeting, which has not been previously reported, Juul's chief operating officer said he had advised the company to slow down and take the time needed to fix supply chain problems and manufacturing defects. He was fired the next day.

Now 4 years later, Juul is a giant of e-cigarettes. It hit $1 billion in sales in 2018, and at the end of last year, was valued at $38 billion, more than Ford Motor Company.

But that growth also shows how addictive its product has proven, with smokers and young people alike.

The addictiveness and strength of Juul is no accident. The company set out to develop a way for its product to pack the same punch as a cigarette, delivering a nicotine level of 5%, up to 5 times more powerful than other e-cigarettes at the time.

In the early days, Juul's packaging only listed nicotine in tiny type in the ingredients and did not have the warning labels it does now. That means some who are hooked didn't know what they were getting into.

Juul now faces a growing pile of lawsuits from parents, school districts, counties and states. While it says it's refocused on public health, it's under scrutiny from U.S. regulators, who it must convince to let it stay on the market.

Read our full story: nyti.ms/2QRblER