While we in the Netherlands are still in the midst of discovering Threads, Instagram has now rolled out a new feature using AI. One that only adds to the discussion on social media.
You’ve probably just now written your first posts on Threads. It’s the medium that has to compete with Elon Musk’s X. Although there you actually write everything yourself, that’s about to change on parent app Instagram.
In fact, parent company Meta is bringing AI to the app. Soon you will be able to create images in your Instagram Stories using AI.
Instagram gets new AI feature
The feature is currently rolling out in the United States and it is not yet known when it will come to the rest of the world. With AI there, it is now possible to change the background of a Story on Instagram. So with this, you can make it appear that you are putting yourself on a tropical beach or that you are surrounded by some cute puppies.
To use this feature, you must first add a Story. You do this by swiping right on Instagram. Then you choose the photo you want. Once you have done that, you will also see a new icon next to the existing button to add text. Through this button it is possible to add an AI background. You do this by adding a description of what you want to see.
Enter the background you want. (Image: Instagram)
Once you do, a special AI sticker will appear in your Story, letting other Instagram users know that AI was used in the creation of the story. With that sticker, they too can immediately try the feature.
Meta doesn’t want to be left behind
It seems that parent company Meta does not want to be left behind by Google and Microsoft who are betting heavily on AI. It announced several AI chatbots earlier during the Meta Connect special event. These are mainly aimed at younger people and all have different personalities.
Still, the question is whether we want to connect social media and AI. A major criticism of apps like Instagram is that it makes people pretend to be better than they are. This causes young people to compare themselves to their role models. Something that in turn more often causes mental health issues and the pressure to also radiate success and happiness, even if you are not for a while.
Now this is just background, but where does it end? With Google, for example, it is already possible to change faces in group photos. So we seem to be seeing less and less pictures of reality.
