AI technology is changing how content is created and presented on Meta Platforms' Instagram, shifting away from the platform's historically polished style to a "raw aesthetic" marked by imperfections, according to Instagram director Adam Mosseri. This reflects a broader transformation in social media content fueled by AI integration.
Mosseri recently discussed on Meta's Threads platform that Instagram's emphasis on highly edited, high-contrast posts is fading. He noted that users have increasingly stopped sharing polished personal content publicly, opting instead for unfiltered snapshots and voice messages in private chats. The rise of AI-generated material has led Merriam-Webster to dub "AI slop" its 2025 Word of the Year, highlighting concerns over the proliferation of low-quality AI content and questions about authenticity.
Meta has actively incorporated AI into its platforms, launching tools like AI Studio for building customized chatbots and experimenting with virtual AI influencers modeled after real celebrities. Mosseri emphasized that as AI-generated content becomes more common, maintaining trust will require new methods of verifying authenticity. He suggested future technologies might involve cryptographic tagging of images at the time of capture to confirm their origin, helping distinguish genuine content from AI fabrications.
Industry leaders have also noted the challenges posed by AI in social media content creation and consumption. Elon Musk anticipates that generative AI will soon produce the majority of music and video content, profoundly changing human communication. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman remarked on a growing convergence between human and AI communication styles, with social media posts taking on an "AI flavor" that complicates the search for truth online.
As AI continues to influence digital platforms, Instagram and other social networks face the challenge of balancing creative innovation with the need to preserve authenticity and user trust, in an environment where the boundaries between human- and machine-generated content are increasingly blurred.
Article edited by Jerry Chen
