Featured Image Credit: Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images/Getty Stock Images
Topics: Technology, Facebook, Instagram, Black Mirror, Artificial intelligence
Jen Thomas
Topics: Technology, Facebook, Instagram, Black Mirror, Artificial intelligence
It sounds like something from an episode of Black Mirror, but Instagram users have reported seeing their own face in adverts.
Critics are hitting out at the platform, with many slamming the practice as 'creepy' and 'cursed'.
Many people have complained about the increasing use of AI in our everyday lives, calling it dystopian and uncomfortable.
For some, this takes it to the next level.
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Imagine idly scrolling and being stopped in your tracks... by your own face.
Sales people have always tried to make potential customers picture themselves using their product, but this could take that to a very literal place.
It came to light after one anonymous user shared their experience on Reddit, saying the ads appeared after they 'used Meta AI to edit a selfie.'
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They claimed that Instagram then started displaying adverts 'using my face on ads targeted at me'.
The ads cannot be seen by other users, and apparently show your face edited into the advert with a tag saying 'imagined for you'.
It's part of the 'Imagine' feature on the app.
Axios reports that Instagram is using generative AI to use your image 'so you can be the star of your own story and share your favorites with friends,' according to Meta.
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Needless to say, social media users aren't impressed.
Posters on X (formerly Twitter) raged at the idea, with one dubbing it 'creepy AF'.
Another insisted: "If I see an ad for a t-shirt and I'm wearing the t-shirt there’s a 0% chance I'm buying said t-shirt and a 100% I'm gonna jump scare."
"I try not to say this, but this is actually dystopian" slammed another.
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"How is this not creepy? Actually gross and if a company uses this to advertise, it will just make the brand look creepy," advised one commenter.
"Welcome to the future of your face, your brand, their profit," summarised another.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg previously opened up about the idea in an interview with The Verge.
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“I think there’s been this trend over time where the feeds started off as primarily and exclusively content for people you followed, your friends," he said.
“And you just add on to that, a layer of, ‘OK, and we’re also going to show you content that’s generated by an AI system that might be something that you’re interested in’ … how big it gets is kind of dependent on the execution and how good it is."
It seems they might want to go back to the drawing board judging by the reaction so far, with one Redditor saying they've deleted their Facebook and Instagram accounts.
“I don’t like the future we’re living in," said one.
"I have removed my photos off Facebook and reduced there permissions to next to nothing,” added another.
A Meta spokesperson told Tyla how you can switch off this feature if you don't like it.
They explained: “You can opt out of this feature. Tap the three dots in the upper right corner of the post to see your options. You can either select ‘hide’ so that you won’t see posts like this in your Feed or you can select ‘stop seeing this content’ to turn off suggested AI images of yourself in Feed.”
They added: “These images can only be generated for users who have onboarded to Meta's Imagine yourself feature, which includes adding photos to that feature and have accepted the feature's terms.”