Facebook users in the United States and Canada can now opt into a new AI tool from Meta that promises to enhance the “shareworthiness” of their images and videos. The tool is limited to photos and videos stored on your phone’s camera roll — it does not access content you’ve already posted on Facebook.
If users choose to enable it, Meta’s AI will scan their camera roll, upload unpublished images to its cloud, and highlight “hidden gems” that might otherwise get lost among screenshots, receipts, and random snaps. The AI can then suggest edits, collages, or creative ideas that users can save or share.
Meta previously tested this functionality in June. At that time, the company denied using private, unposted images to train its AI but did not rule out doing so in the future. Now, the feature appears to move in that direction — though with restrictions. According to Meta, “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 it.”
For now, Meta says it will collect and store photos in the cloud and allow its AI to analyse them, but they will not be used to train the AI unless the user actively engages with the tools. In June, the company noted that some data might be retained for more than 30 days. The current rollout states that the AI “selects media from your camera roll and uploads it to our cloud on an ongoing basis,” while clarifying that the content “won’t be used for ad targeting.”
Last year, Meta admitted that its AI models had already been trained on all public photos and text posted to Facebook and Instagram by adult users since 2007. Users enabling the new tool will be prompted to “permit cloud processing to get creative ideas made for you from your camera roll,” according to Facebook’s blog post.
It remains unclear whether the prompt explicitly alerts users that their photos could be used to train AI if they engage with the tools. Meta positions the feature as a convenience for photography enthusiasts who may not have time to edit their images or want inspiration before sharing them. The feature is expected to roll out more broadly in the coming months.
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