Meta has officially discontinued a controversial artificial intelligence feature just days after its high-profile release. The tool previously allowed users to generate custom images by referencing public Instagram accounts through simple mentions. Corporate executives quickly pulled the plug on the project following widespread public backlash.
The company announced the sudden decision in an official update to its corporate blog on Friday. "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," Meta explained in its statement. "We've heard the feedback that this feature missed the mark, so it's no longer available," the company added.
Meta is removing Instagram’s latest AI feature following a negative response from users:
“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. Our intent was to provide a… pic.twitter.com/bXfyXWtFGN
— Pop Base (@PopBase) July 10, 2026
The disputed feature originally launched on Tuesday alongside more than 30 new artificial intelligence effects for Instagram Stories. These creative tools utilized Muse Image, which is the premier generation model developed by Meta Superintelligence Labs. The update was intended to let users easily create personalized birthday cards and group vacation memes using the likenesses of their friends.
Meta initially required users to manually opt out of the image generation feature through their account settings if they did not want their photos utilized. This passive consent model triggered immediate alarm bells across the entertainment industry. The labor union SAG-AFTRA quickly urged its members to take immediate action to protect their personal likenesses from digital exploitation.
Independent researchers have already documented serious real-world consequences stemming from unauthorized likeness generation. CareYaya chief executive officer Neal K. Shah warned that bad actors are already using artificial intelligence to fabricate fake product endorsements. "I think the major alarm bells that went off for me was I saw fraud actually happening in real time," Shah stated.
Shah explained that scammers have used his face to market unverified health supplements to unsuspecting elderly followers. He reportedly spent hours answering frantic messages from viewers and reporting the fraudulent advertisements directly to Meta. Despite his repeated alerts to the social media giant, the misleading ads continued to circulate on the platform.
While the specific mention-based image tool is gone, the rest of Instagram's new creative features will remain active. Meta continues to pour billions of dollars into its proprietary Llama artificial intelligence infrastructure to compete with industry rivals. For now, the hasty retreat highlights the ongoing tension between rapid tech expansion and personal privacy rights.