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Meta will put AI-generated images in your Facebook and Instagram feeds
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Meta will put AI-generated images in your Facebook and Instagram feeds

If you thought avoiding AI-generated images was hard, Facebook and Instagram are now pushing them right into your feeds. During its Meta Connect event on Wednesday, the company announced that it’s testing a new feature that will create AI-generated content for you “based on your interests or current trends” — including some that include your face.

Whenever you come across an “Imagined for You” image in your feed, you’ll see options to share the image or generate a new photo in real time. One example (embedded below) shows several AI-generated images of “an enchanted realm, where magic fills the air.” But others may include your face… which I imagine would be a little creepy to come across as you scroll.

The examples at the very top of this article include captions that say you can “imagine” yourself as a video game character or an astronaut exploring space. Both of these images appear to use a person’s photos to create an AI-generated version of them in fictional scenarios.

In a statement to The EdgeMeta spokesperson Amanda Felix says the platform only generates AI images of your face if you’ve “onboarded Meta’s Imagine Yourself feature, which includes adding photos to that feature” and accepted its terms. You can also remove AI images from your feed.

Last week, 404 Media discovered that using Snapchat’s AI selfie feature gives the company permission to use your face in ads that only you see (unless you opt out). It appears that Facebook and Instagram will similarly only show you the AI-generated content, while keeping sharing optional.

During an interview with The EdgeMeta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Alex Heath, said adding AI images to your feeds is the next “logical step” for Facebook and Instagram. “I think there’s been a trend over time where the feeds started as primarily and exclusively content for people you were following, your friends,” Zuckerberg said. “And you just add a layer on top of that of, ‘OK, and we’re also going to show you content that’s been generated by an AI system that might be something you’re interested in’ … how big it becomes kind of depends on the execution and how good it is.”

Meta says the feature is still in testing, so it’s unclear how widely or quickly it will roll out. But throwing AI-generated images into our feeds sounds like it’s likely to expand beyond the friend-keeping space these platforms once were.

Update, September 25: Added Meta’s statement.