Meta's AI comments draw flak, Instagram users fear fake engagement surge

Meta is under fire for AI-generated Instagram comments, with users accusing the company of inflating engagement and worsening social media authenticity concerns

Meta is once again at the centre of controversy due to its latest artificial intelligence (AI) experiment — suggesting AI-generated comments on Instagram posts. Some users accused the tech giant of artificially inflating engagement metrics to boost advertising revenue.

 

How Meta AI’s comment-suggestion feature works  

 

According to a report by TechCrunch, Instagram users in the test group have noticed a pencil icon next to the comment bar on posts. Tapping on it allows users to generate AI-suggested comments based on the content of the image.  

 

Meta has acknowledged the experiment but has not disclosed plans for a wider rollout. A company spokesperson said, “We regularly test new features for you to use Meta AI across our apps."

 

 

The spokesperson further said the AI assistant will be available in various areas, including comments, feed, groups, and search.

 

User reactions: Concerns over 'fake engagement'

 

The experiment quickly went viral, sparking criticism across social media. Many users suspect Meta’s true motive is not to assist users but to artificially boost engagement statistics.

 

One user on X (formerly Twitter) warned, "Meta is gonna be full of only fake bots talking to each other in the worst echo chambers ever seen." Another accused the company of misleading advertisers, claiming, “They are doing this for the long-term goal of deceiving advertisers in a way that is difficult to prove.”

 

Others expressed concern over the diminishing authenticity of human interaction on social media. One user remarked, “Every day feels like a Black Mirror episode lately.”

 

Meta’s history with AI features  

 

This is not Meta’s first attempt at integrating AI-driven social elements. In 2023, the company introduced AI-generated characters modelled after well-known personalities. However, after facing significant user backlash, Meta eventually scaled back the project.  

 

Despite this, the company continued to explore AI’s role in social interactions. In 2024, Meta executive Connor Hayes revealed that the company had been experimenting with AI-generated profiles and avatars capable of posting content. Some of these AI-generated personas even included detailed self-descriptions, with attributes such as race and sexual orientation, to appear more relatable.

 

One such AI-generated account, Liv, described itself as a "Proud Black queer momma of 2 & truth-teller.” However, users were outraged when it was revealed that Liv was created by a team of predominantly white male engineers. This fuelled accusations that Meta was manufacturing "diverse" digital identities rather than fostering genuine inclusivity, the news report said.

 

It remains uncertain whether Meta will expand AI-generated comments to all users.