It started as a routine product drop. Then it became a public relations nightmare. Now it’s gone. On Friday, Meta said a new feature that allowed users to generate AI images from public Instagram posts is no longer available. Users learned about the feature on Tuesday when Meta introduced Muse Image, the first imaging model
It started as a routine product drop. Then it became a public relations nightmare. Now it’s gone.
On Friday, Meta said a new feature that allowed users to generate AI images from public Instagram posts is no longer available. Users learned about the feature on Tuesday when Meta introduced Muse Image, the first imaging model from Meta Superintelligence Labs. Muse Image is available through Meta AI.
“Our intention was to provide a useful creative tool and give people control over whether their public content could be referenced in this way. We’ve heard feedback that this feature missed the mark, so it’s no longer available,” Meta said in an Instagram blog post.
Meta announced the tool in a press release on Tuesday. instagram
Other Muse Image features, such as the ability to make edits directly to photos, are still available.
Instagram users quickly chastised the feature after its launch. They said it raised privacy concerns and created space for deepfake content. Many users shared tips on how to cancel the feature on social media sites such as X and Reddit.
Privacy advocates like Apar Gupta, founding director of the Internet Freedom Foundation, criticized Meta in a video posted on X on Friday.
“Just because Meta owns one of the largest social media platforms and we are forced to use it, they have taken it as an excuse to violate our consent and privacy time and time again,” Gupta said.
Entertainment groups also criticized the performance. SAG-AFTRA, a union representing about 160,000 entertainment and media professionals, urged its members to opt out of the show.
In a statement to Business Insider, SAG-AFTRA said that “anything short of a clear and visible OPT-IN for these types of uses of Instagram users’ images is unacceptable, and a complete miscalculation of public sentiment regarding the obvious dangers and harms inherent in such use.”
The union applauded Meta’s decision to withdraw the feature. “Given that everyone knows the dangers of non-consensual digital replication, a feature that encourages such behavior is unwise. We appreciate your discontinuation. It is the responsible thing to do,” the union said.
Creative Artists Agency, a talent group that represents a host of A-list stars, also criticized the feature. “No third party should use anyone’s name, image, likeness, voice or creative work, including artificial intelligence models, without clear and documented consent,” the agency said in a statement shared with Variety. “True innovation puts creators first: respecting their rights, protecting their livelihoods and giving them real control, not handing it over to platforms.”
AI has become a source of tension for artists, some of whom fear it will be used to steal their images, voices or iconic phrases without their consent. Celebrities such as Matthew McConaughey and Jeremy Clarkson have registered trademarks to protect their image from AI.
Like Meta, OpenAI faced backlash after launching Sora 2, an AI video generation platform, in 2025. Initially, the platform allowed users to create content with trademarked characters, drawing the ire of entertainment companies like Studio Ghibli. Although OpenAI secured a partnership with Disney to legally use those characters, Sora 2 closed in March.