Meta removes controversial AI feature on Instagram after backlash
Quick Answer
Meta has removed a controversial AI feature from Instagram that allowed users to modify photos from public accounts, citing user backlash.
Quick Take
Meta has removed a controversial AI feature from Instagram that allowed users to modify photos from public accounts, citing user backlash. The feature, part of the Muse Image AI tool, was criticized for not notifying users when their images were referenced, leading to concerns over misuse, particularly in generating inappropriate content.
Key Points
- Meta's Muse Image AI tool faced immediate backlash for its photo modification feature.
- The feature did not notify users when their images were referenced, raising privacy concerns.
- Meta acknowledged the feedback and decided to remove the feature entirely.
- The decision came amid scrutiny from users and talent agencies like CAA.
- AI misuse in social media has been a growing concern, particularly for generating inappropriate content.
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Meta has axed a controversial feature that allowed users to modify photos from public Instagram accounts using AI. The feature, which was rolled out earlier this week along with a batch of other AI tools, “missed the mark” and is no longer available, according to the company.
Earlier this week, Meta announced Muse Image, a new AI image generator built by its dedicated AI unit known as Meta Superintelligence Labs. Meta promoted one feature that allowed individuals to generate images by @-mentioning public Instagram accounts that they wanted to reference. The feature, which wasn’t designed to alert a user if their photos were used in this way, prompted immediate backlash.
TechCrunch wrote its own guide explaining to users how to disable the feature.
Now, Meta has reversed course. The company issued a blog post Friday announcing that it was removing the feature. Puck News founding partner Dylan Byers was the first to share the company’s decision.
“Our intent was to provide a useful creative tool and to give people control over whether their public content could be referenced in this way,” the company posted on its blog. “We’ve heard the feedback that this feature missed the mark, so it’s no longer available.”
TechCrunch reached out to Meta for more information and will update this article if it responds.
Since its integration with social media platforms, AI has been misused with wild abandon — often to generate naked images of female celebrities. Platforms have attempted to mitigate this trend, although the guardrails introduced have often fallen short.
In the case of Meta’s newly nixed feature, it seems somewhat obvious that it would have been abused in this way. Indeed, Byers notes that the decision to do away with the feature came “amid scrutiny from users and talent agencies, including CAA.”
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Lucas is a senior writer at TechCrunch, where he covers artificial intelligence, consumer tech, and startups. He previously covered AI and cybersecurity at Gizmodo. You can contact Lucas by emailing lucas.ropek@techcrunch.com.
— Originally published at techcrunch.com
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