Meta has introduced a new artificial intelligence feature for Facebook users in the United States and Canada that aims to make photos and videos more “shareworthy.” The opt-in feature scans a user’s phone camera roll — rather than media already uploaded to Facebook — to identify potential highlights that may have been overlooked.
How Meta’s new AI feature works
According to Meta, once users enable the feature, its AI system will automatically review photos stored on their device, upload them to Meta’s cloud, and suggest edits, collages, and improved versions of those images. The company says the technology is designed to uncover “hidden gems” buried among screenshots, receipts, or other everyday snaps that often get forgotten.
Users will have the option to save or share the AI-generated suggestions directly from Facebook. Meta emphasised that participation is voluntary, and users can choose whether to activate the camera roll feature.
The feature first appeared in testing earlier this year. In June, Meta stated that private, unposted photos were not being used to train its AI models at the time, though it did not confirm whether that policy might change in the future. The latest update now offers a clearer indication of how Meta intends to handle this data.
What happens to user data
In the announcement published on Friday, Meta clarified that it will not use users’ camera roll media to improve its AI systems unless specific actions are taken. “We don’t use media from your camera roll to improve AI at Meta, unless you choose to edit this media with our AI tools, or share,” the company explained.
When asked to confirm whether Meta’s AI is trained on this uploaded content, company spokesperson Mari Melguizo stated: “This means the camera roll media uploaded by this feature to make suggestions won’t be used to improve AI at Meta. Only if you edit the suggestions with our AI tools or publish those suggestions to Facebook, improvements to AI at Meta may be made.”
This means the company will collect and store users’ photos in its cloud infrastructure so the AI can analyse them to make creative suggestions. Still, the data will not be used for AI training unless the user chooses to edit or share the content.
Privacy and future concerns
Although Meta says that the uploaded media “won’t be used for ad targeting,” it acknowledges that the feature continuously uploads content from a user’s camera roll to its servers. In earlier tests, the company said it might retain some of that data for longer than 30 days.
Meta’s handling of user data has faced scrutiny in the past. Last year, the company confirmed that it had already used public posts — including photos and text shared on Facebook and Instagram by adult users since 2007 — to train its AI systems. This revelation raised concerns about how much personal data could eventually feed Meta’s AI development.
The new feature, which will appear as a prompt asking users to “allow cloud processing to get creative ideas made for you from your camera roll,” is designed to help people who enjoy photography but lack the time or expertise to refine their shots. However, Meta has not yet confirmed whether this prompt will also warn users that edited or shared content could be used for AI training.
Facebook plans to roll out the feature gradually over the coming months to its North American users, with broader availability potentially following later.
