Social media updates and new features to know this week
Including Instagram, Snapchat, Meta and more.
Instagram head Adam Mosseri says getting rid of algorithmic feeds would actually make the app worse for users.
The Guardian reports his argument is that in a chronological feed, accounts that post the most would get the most visibility.
Because brands tend to post more often than creators or people you know, users would end up seeing a bunch of promotional content as they’re scrolling. This would have a major negative effect, he said.
“What happens is people become a bit less interested in the experience and they use it a lot less, which then means that there’s less reach to go around and people start to get more and more mad about the fact that their reach is going down because the overall pie gets smaller,” Mosseri told reporters.
Mosseri’s comments came on the heels of Australia considering requiring social platforms to let users choose if they want algorithms or not.
He also acknowledged that Instagram’s ranking system can feel like a “black box” and said the company is trying to give users more control over recommendations to make the experience more positive.
Here’s what else is new.
Instagram will now let users add posts they’re tagged in to their own profile grid.
When someone is tagged in a post, they should see an “Add to grid” option. The post will then appear on their profile, marked with a tag icon.
Social Media Today reports the change gives users another way to show collaborations without having to create a separate post. It also adds to IG’s recent push to give people more control over how their profiles look, including the ability to rearrange grid posts and edit thumbnails.
Snapchat
Snapchat recently launched Snapchat Plans, a feature that organizes events from within the app, similar to Facebook events.
Users can create an event with a date and time, invite up to 200 friends and track who is attending. Invitees can respond by confirming, giving a maybe or declining and Snapchat will send a reminder an hour before the event.
This will include a “My Plans” tab on profiles to keep track of upcoming and past events.
Snapchat said 35% of surveyed U.S. users ages 13 to 24 are using group chats to make plans, so the update helps formalize the process.
The platform is also expanding its Dynamic Product Ads, which means brands can now show more personalized product recommendations in the Sponsored Snaps chat tab. The ads will pull from a company’s product catalog and are designed to show people items they may be more likely to buy, Snap says.
Meta
Meta rolled out a personal AI agent called Muse that will help users with their tasks.
The agent can send emails, book travel, fill out forms and make purchases. Muse will function as its own app or through WhatsApp and continue working after someone closes the app, checking back when it needs approval.
It can also remember details and make suggestions based on past conversations and users can give the agent permission to access other apps.
Meta says Muse conversations and data will not be shared with its ad systems.
Another small addition: Meta is expanding Community Notes to Latin America, including Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela.
X
X enabled a new 10-digit access code for DMs as part of X Chat that works like a phone number.
Users can generate the private “X number” and share it with people they don’t follow or aren’t connected to, giving people a way to message them without exchanging a real phone number. It will additionally allow audio and video calls.
