Meta Pulls Instagram AI Deepfake Feature After Backlash
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- Meta disabled the feature that let users generate AI images by @-mentioning any public Instagram account, saying the "feature missed the mark" after days of backlash.
- The feature was announced Tuesday as part of Meta AI's new Muse Image model and allowed AI creations to incorporate content from public accounts without the owner's permission.
- Meta had offered an opt-out buried in Instagram settings before fully disabling the feature, but critics argued the process placed an unfair burden on account holders.
- Haley McNamara, executive director and chief strategy officer of the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, warned the tool could enable sextortion and scams, calling the opt-out approach "unacceptable."
- The Screen Actors Guild recommended members opt out of the feature and published step-by-step instructions for doing so.
Why it matters: Meta rolled the feature out Tuesday and pulled it within days after SAG and anti-exploitation advocates flagged consent gaps — showing that even an opt-out mechanism won't shield AI image products from rapid, high-profile backlash before they gain traction.
