Instagram is testing AI that analyzes photos and generates comments… but isn't that the opposite of solving the bot problem?

Instagram has been gradually adding filters and tools to help creators prevent bot and spam comments, but now the social media platform is toying with the idea of intentionally encouraging AI to write comments.

Instagram could soon allow AI to analyze images and generate comments on the content, according to a recently spotted test of the feature. The tool uses Meta AI to examine the image and suggest brief comments, so the commenter doesn’t have to write something from scratch.

The test, first spotted by social media trends tester Jonah Manzano but confirmed in a comment to TechCrunch, suggests three comments based on the contents of the image. Users click on a “help me write” icon after tapping on the comment icon to access the feature.

According to a screenshot of the feature, when the commenting tool is used, Meta AI “can analyze photos, including facial features, to help you write.” In a video of the tool, the AI looks at a selfie taken in a living room and suggests comments like “cute living room setup” and “love the cozy atmosphere.”

The idea of AI analyzing images could miff some photographers, but it’s not a completely new notion; Meta has already tested a similar feature on Facebook. My Facebook feed is filled with AI suggesting questions to ask underneath a photo, including what often feels like strange personal questions that an AI shouldn’t have the answer to anyway.

The Instagram comment section has long drawn criticism for bot-written comments and spam. You can, for example, use a third-party tool to buy randomly generated comments to trick the algorithm into delivering a post to more feeds.

In 2023, the platform added new tools for creators that would help filter out bot comments and fake followers. The tested feature feels a bit like the opposite of those tools. After all, isn’t AI a bot?

The test shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, however, as Meta has been focusing on AI to deliver many of the latest features. Last year, Instagram began rolling out AI Studio to select creators, enabling them to create an AI version of themselves to respond to fans’ DMs.

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