AI Trace
Creative GenerationConsumer FacingVerified

Reviewed and published by trentmaziarz, March 17, 2026. Discovered and drafted by our automated research pipeline.

Meta uses AI to let users generate images from text prompts inside Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger. Type a description, and the AI instantly creates four images.

Details

Powered by the Emu foundation model (trained on 1.1 billion public Facebook/Instagram images), launched September 2023. Includes the 'Imagine Me' feature (July 2024) that lets users insert themselves into AI-generated scenes using selfies. Controversies: trained on user photos without explicit opt-in consent; EU launch paused June 2024 over GDPR concerns, resumed May 2025 under 'legitimate interest' basis; early outputs contained racial bias and content filter failures.

Products affected

FacebookInstagramWhatsAppMessengerMeta AI (web)Ray-Ban MetaQuest

Sources & Evidence

Regulatory Filing

Regulatory FilingVerified
DPC statement on Meta AI
Data Protection Comission·May 2025
https://www.dataprotection.ie/en/news-media/latest-news/dpc-statement-meta-ai

News Article

News ArticleVerified
"Meta AI non-compliant with GDPR" – Digital rights group menaces Meta with injunction over EU AI training
TechRadar·May 2025
https://www.techradar.com/computing/cyber-security/meta-ai-non-compliant-with-gdpr-digital-rights-group-menaces-meta-with-injunction-over-eu-ai-training

Company Disclosure

Company DisclosureVerified
Introducing New AI Experiences Across Our Family of Apps and Devices
Meta Newsroom·Sep 2023
https://about.fb.com/news/2023/09/introducing-ai-powered-assistants-characters-and-creative-tools/

Cite this record

Trace Foundation. (2026). Meta: Meta uses AI to let users generate images from text prompts inside Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger. Type a description, and the AI instantly creates four images (data as of 2026-03-17) [Data set record]. AI Trace. https://www.aitrace.org/r/practice/5ce2dc88-9f2c-4735-989f-d343e16a68dd. Accessed October 13, 2026.

Stable link
https://www.aitrace.org/r/practice/5ce2dc88-9f2c-4735-989f-d343e16a68dd
Data as of
March 17, 2026
Last verified
March 5, 2026

How to cite AI Trace

Other practices by Meta

Customer SvcMeta AI is a free AI chatbot built into Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger that can answer questions, generate images, help with tasks, and hold voice conversations — available to approximately 700 million users monthly.RecommendationAll content that appears in Facebook and Instagram feeds — posts, Reels, Stories, suggested accounts, Explore — is ranked by AI systems that predict what each user is most likely to engage with.ModerationMeta is training large language models to read its content policies and make enforcement decisions on flagged posts — replacing human content reviewers in an increasing number of violation categories.

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