Meta removes controversial Instagram AI photo feature after social media backlash
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Jurors in two cases found that tech giants Meta and Google were liable for creating platforms that harm young people. Tom Fitzgerald sits down with Sacha Haworth, the founder and CEO of Tech Oversight Project to discuss what this could mean for social media.
Just days after Instagram launched a controversial new AI image generation feature, the platform announced it has already taken it down, following fierce backlash across social media.
Meta Muse Image
What we know:
On Tuesday, Meta introduced a new AI image generation model, called Muse Image.
Among the model's features, users would be able to tag public profiles, and Muse Image would use that profile's posts for reference to generate new images.
What they're saying:
Instagram announced the removal of the feature in an update on the platform's blog on Friday.
"Earlier this week, we announced that one way for people to generate images in Meta AI is by @-mentioning public Instagram accounts that they want to reference," the statement reads. "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. We've heard the feedback that this feature missed the mark, so it's no longer available."
Social media opts out
Dig deeper:
The feature sparked uproar across social media, particularly because all public profiles, except for users under 18, were automatically opted in to have their photos feed the AI model.
One user called it "a privacy landmine waiting to detonate," according to a New York Times report.
Countless people shared tutorials on how to opt out of having their posts "reused."
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Meta Muse Image allows public Instagram photos to be used in AI generator
What's next:
It's unclear if the backlash from Muse Image will impact the platform's next AI effort, Muse Video, which Meta said earlier this week was "coming soon."
The Source: Information in this story is form Meta and previous FOX reporting.