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Hello, geeks!

So…. Instagram latest copy/paste app has dropped globally. Instants.
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And while I am almost definitely not Adam Mosseri’s target market here, I’m not convinced this one has legs.

It’s basically a clone of an app that already failed to sustain mainstream traction, BeReal, which itself was riffing on the addictive mechanics of Snapchat, which for teens is basically messaging app crack.

The problem? Instants doesn’t seem to add enough new functionality, novelty, or reason to exist beyond: “What if BeReal, but Instagram?”

Bold.

Check out my deeper dive on Instants later in this week’s Geekout.

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Meta Subscription Fever

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Meta product managers appear to have discovered the subscription button and are now repeatedly smashing it.

Meta Verified launched in 2023. ad-free Facebook and Instagram plans arrived in the UK and Europe last year.

Earlier this week, WhatsApp started rolling out WhatsApp Plus, with paid perks like custom themes, app icons, premium sticker packs, and more.

But Meta looks like it’s only getting warmed up.

According to Meta’s App Store listings for Threads and WhatsApp, new in-app purchase options for “No Ads” have appeared.

Pricing goes up to £14.99/month for ad-free experiences on 5 accounts.
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Which feels… ambitious.

That’s a big ask for most users, especially when the core benefit is simply removing something people already dislike.

But lets be honest, Meta is only offering these ad-free plans in limited markets under duress from EU regulators.

The more intriguing move is Meta AI…

A premium Meta AI subscription also appears to be in the works, though there are no clear details yet on what users would actually get for the money.
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At around £20/month, Meta will need a very strong reason for people to choose it over ChatGPT or Claude, both of which already have established paid plans and much clearer utility.

For now, it feels like Meta is testing how far it can stretch the subscription model across every major app it owns.

Still, never underestimate Meta’s ability to turn “free app with ads” into “please subscribe to make this slightly less annoying.”

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1 cool thing…

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Instagram’s New Instants App Is a Snapchat Clone for Thirst Traps

Instagram’s Instants app lets you send disappearing photos—and it’s probably where your horny friends will post spicy pics.

2. EU to crack down on TikTok + Instagram’s ‘addictive design’ by summer 2026 [INTERVENING]

3. WhatsApp starts to roll out paid subscriptions, with exclusive premium perks [ENSHITTIFYING]

4. TikTok will now lets UK users pay £3.99 a month to avoid ads in feed [AD-BLOCKING]

5. Meta tests its own version of Grok in Threads, but it’s already pissing users off [IRRITATING]

Instant failure? — Instagram’s new app has a lot to prove

Instagram's new 'Instants' feature combines elements from Snapchat and BeReal

If there’s one thing Instagram is good at, it’s copying Snapchat. And so here is Instants, the snappiest of all Snapchat feature clones.

It’s as simple as feature can be. You take a photo for either your friends or close friends and it gets added to a stack of images in the corner of their DM inboxes. You get notified if someone reacts to it.

…and that’s it.

The question is… WHY? BeReal proved itself to be a dud years ago, and Snapchat has cornered the market for disappearing photos. Given the way Instants presented in the app, it doesn’t exactly encourage interesting use cases, either.

The most interesting thing I’ve seen posted so far is pet photos, and it’s easy to forget Instants is even there in the app. Meh.

The feature might evolve over time but as it stands right now, I just can’t see it taking off, except maybe among younger users. But even then, if they like this kind of sharing, won’t they already be doing in on Snapchat?

If Instants is already bugging you, here’s how to turn the bubble notifications off and how to delete a photo you accidentally sent (essential knowledge!).

Oh, and Instants is also available as a standalone app. That seems even more pointless than it being a feature in the main app. I mean, here at Geekout, we’re old enough to remember when Facebook launched a standalone app for poking people. 🙃

Yeah, that one didn’t last long.

Image: Meta Ray Ban Display Smartglasses

• Meta rolled out major new features for its Ray-Ban Display AI smart glasses, like neural handwriting in WhatsApp and Instagram, live captions for conversations, and more

  …and third-party apps and games are also coming to the Ray-Ban Display AI smart glasses

• Meta is offering rival AI chatbots free access to WhatsApp during the EU competition probe into its ban of the bots

• Meta published a guide to help you choose which of its AI smart glasses are right for you

• Meta is renaming the ‘Engagement’ metric to ‘Interactions’ across its apps for consistency

• Meta added a new ‘Profile Suggestions’ option to let you control whether your profile appears in ‘People You May Know’ or ‘Suggestions for You’

• Meta is being sued by a California county over alleged scam ads

• Meta launched a new AI assistant to help developers set up WhatsApp Business apps faster

• Facebook has added a new Content Planner and Reels Bulk Upload for creators

• Facebook allows scammers to send ads to seniors at scale, a new report shows

• Facebook now lets you erase the music in your video if there’s a copyright claim against it, rather than muting the whole thing

• Meta is testing the ability to sync your profile picture across its apps

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Image: Instagram’s new multiple captions for carousels feature

• Instagram is testing letting you add unique captions for each piece of content in a carousel

• Instagram will now snitch on teens by telling their parents the topics driving their feed, and new topics searched for

• Instagram is considering support for longform video like podcasts and livestreams as it targets growth on connected TVs

• Instagram has been spotted testing 16-account collab posts, but don’t expect it to be available any time soon

• Instagram is testing moving the Story progress bar to the bottom of the screen

• Instagram is making it easier to change post music during the creation process without needing to remove and reselect a new track

• Instagram has quietly removed the Places tab from Search for some users, killing easy location discovery

• Instagram has quietly added Events inside DMs

• Instagram has redesigned its iPad app to be more like the iPhone version, ditching the Reels-centric experience

• Instagram and Google have partnered to make photos and videos in the app look better on Android, closing the gap with iOS

• Instagram Edits has added duration controls for transitions, support for Live Photos, and more

  … Edits has also added ‘Template Settings’ and ‘Add Version’ options

• Instagram Edits is testing the ability to export videos up to 15 minutes in length

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Image: Threads refreshed brand logo and font

• Threads has officially launched its new logo and font to further separate the platform from Instagram

• Threads seems to be planning an ad-free subscription from £3.99 for one account per month

• WhatsApp also seems to be working on a ‘No Ads’ subscription, which could cost as much as £14.99 per month for four accounts

• WhatsApp is jumping on the Snapchat-cloning bandwagon by testing disappearing messages

• WhatsApp is testing Business Broadcasts to help companies stay in touch with customers

• WhatsApp could be set to introduce a feature that lets group admins share a greeting message

• WhatsApp is testing a feature that shows when status updates are reshared many times

• WhatsApp is testing quick reactions to status updates

• WhatsApp is working on a new widget that shows who shared status updates

• WhatsApp is set to test new chat themes on the web

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Image: X’s new ‘History’ tab on iOS

• X has turned Bookmarks into a full “watch later” media hub with an updated History tab on iOS

• X is launching ‘Fabrizio 24/7,’ a new daily World Cup show hosted by journalist Fabrizio Romano

• X added the custom timelines feature to the list of X Premium benefits

• X Chat added interaction gestures like swipe and double tap to quickly perform actions in chats

• X Chat added an indicator to show when you have new notifications over on X

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Image: TikTok Story Highlights | Credit: @theahmedghanem

• TikTok is introducing Story Highlights, so you can keep Stories visible after the 24-hour limit

• TikTok launched TikTok GO, letting users book hotels, tours, and experiences in-app

• TikTok is testing voice comments, letting you leave your snarky ‘first comment’ on brand posts in audio form

• TikTok could pay the U.S. government a $400 million settlement over child privacy violations

• TikTok introduced ‘TikTok Real’ a new push against fake goods for sale on the platform

• TikTok added the ability to tag or mention someone on your Story

• TikTok renamed its ‘Series’ feature to ‘Drama’ as part of its new focus on micro-drama content

• TikTok is testing skins for Bulletin messages

• TikTok launched ‘Comes Alive,’ a new programme bringing creator-led museum tours and cultural events into the app year-round

• TikTok asked the EU’s top court to scrap its gatekeeper status under the Digital Markets Act, saying it’s just a challenger platform 🤔

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Image: YouTube’s Brandcast 2026 event

• YouTube unveiled a massive slate of creator-led TV shows at Brandcast 2026

  … YouTube also announced new ad and commerce features for brands and creators

• YouTube is stepping in as a middleman, connecting creators with sponsors before content launches

• YouTube is making it easier and quicker to buy products while watching videos on TV

• YouTube is testing a ‘Clear Screen’ mode to declutter Shorts playback

• YouTube is testing a new Practice Mode feature for livestreams on Android

• YouTube refreshed its TV app with smarter navigation and quick channel access

• Google Ads will auto-link to YouTube channels from June 10, removing the need for manual setup

• YouTube and the BBC have launched a creator economy training programme

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Image: LinkedIn’s new 1:1 ‘Advice Sessions’ feature

• LinkedIn is launching paid ‘Advice Sessions’ letting users sell 1:1 consultations from their profiles

• LinkedIn launched a bunch of new tools to help small businesses grow faster

• LinkedIn plans to host up to 4,000 creator-led events a year as it pushes deeper into the creator economy

• Reddit is testing locking out mobile users to force app installs—and users are furious

• Bluesky now supports video previews for videos shared on WhatsApp

• Twitch launched new monetisation features for creators worldwide following a previous US-only launch

• Discord added a free Xbox Game Pass ‘starter edition’ for Nitro subscribers, play other perks and brand discounts

• Discord is celebrating its 11th birthday with free emoji and wallpaper drops

• Telegram introduced a new feature that allows channel admins to run large-scale polls limited to subscriber

• Google has added a ‘pause point’ feature to Android, forcing a 10-second delay before distracting apps like TikTok or Instagram open up

The Meta AI app now lets you point your camera at anything and get instant answers about it.

A new voice mode and expanded image generation have also been added.
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Also spotted this week…

• Instagram is testing ‘Magic Cut’, an AI tool that automatically finds the best parts of your videos and trims them for you
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  Image: Instagram’s new ‘Magic Cut’ feature

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• Instagram now breaks out AI-based contacts away from others in DMs

• Meta AI’s Android app has a new ‘For you’ feed that offers news based on existing prompts.

• WhatsApp has launched Incognito AI chats. Conversations disappear with no logs, no history and no memory

• TikTok is opening its ads platform to AI agents, letting AI become the media buyer

• TikTok is rolling out a new AI feature called ‘AI Transition’ to let you generate transition videos using just two clips

• TikTok’s Tako AI assistant has added chat history support and the option to start new chats.

• YouTube is now displaying AI-generated videos created with the ‘Reimagine’ feature as carousels inside the Shorts tab

• YouTube rolled out new AI ad tools powered by Gemini and Veo

• LinkedIn is upgrading its feed with AI that understands your long-term interests, not just one-off actions

• xAI’s Grok’s voice mode has launched on Apple CarPlay, joining a growing wave of in-car AI assistants

• xAI launched Grok Build, its new AI coding agent designed to compete with tools like Claude Code

• xAI introduced a new ‘Agent Mode’ for Grok AI Imagine

• xAI’s Grok app now has Skills built in

• xAI added a new ‘Connectors’ feature on Grok AI mobile apps

• X is working on preventing automatic AI content disclosure labels from appearing on AI-generated content

• Telegram added autonomous bots, auto-replies, AI-powered sticker search, and more

Okay, the courtroom showdown between Elon Musk and Sam Altman is about the origins of OpenAI, not social media directly…

…but given xAI is X’s parent company, and Elon is such a big figure in our industry, this roundup is well worth a read:

Inside the Courtroom Circus With Elon Musk and Sam Altman

• Courtroom scenes spiralled into spectacle, with protests, props, and fans chasing seats

• Musk cast himself as humanity’s protector, pushing a “Star Trek not Terminator” AI future

• Altman stayed composed as tensions simmered, with icy stares replacing direct clashes

• Private texts and testimony revealed fragile egos behind $670B AI power struggle

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Also this week:

• A judge is forcing Elon Musk and the SEC to justify their tiny $1.5 million Twitter stock settlement in court

Earlier this week, I explained to BBC News why TikTok’s new no-ads subscription in the UK is a sign of the times:
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This whole carousel is worth a swipe 🤣
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Instagram post

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Meta started rolling out a Grok-style feature on Threads this week, where Meta AI can be summoned to engage in your conversations.

Users HATED it.

Especially the fact that the Meta AI account can’t be blocked!
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- Some users went the extra mile to figure out if blocking was possible…
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But in the end, the anger calmed down (or maybe Threads just made it disappear)…
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YouTube pitched creators as Hollywood replacements at Brandcast 2026.

Brands can now sponsor creator shows and buy curated creator slates like TV upfront inventory…

Everything we announced at YouTube Brandcast 2026

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More brand social news this week:

• Meta has become an official Cannes Film Festival partner, bringing creators to the event with smart glasses, AI editing tools, and more

  …but the festival will still ban selfies with stars (sorry creators!)

• TikTok and FIFA have launched a World Cup 2026 ‘Creator Correspondents’ programme

• Disney is doubling down on short-form video via its TikTok-style “Verts” feed to deepen fan engagement, introducing creator-made clips alongside official content

• Target has scrapped its commission-only creator programme, replacing it with Club Target and Target Ambassadors to treat smaller creators and pros differently

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Also quoted this week:

“Children should be protected in the same way wherever they live in our Union”

- European Commission president Ursula von Der Leyen pushes for EU-wide social media age protections for children

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“If lawmakers actually want to protect kids, they should stop asking platforms to decide which stories are acceptable and start regulating core design choices that cause harm in the first place, like endless scroll, engagement‑based recommendations, and surveillance‑driven feeds.”

- Activist Lennon Torres argues app design is more important for safety than content moderation

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“No. The Nazi Party’s name included ‘National Socialist’ for propaganda appeal to workers, but Hitler explicitly rejected Marxist socialism”

- Grok called out its master, Elon Musk, for parroting the old lie that Hitler was a socialist

This is a good look at TikTok’s Commercial Music Library, which gives around 7 million businesses access to 1.5 million licensed tracks

Viral songs like ‘Orla’ power turn trends into revenue, as artists earn from ad spend and organic brand use, not just streaming plays

Breakout hits can scale massively, with tracks hitting 1 million videos and 10 billion views.

Inside the secret TikTok library that turns viral songs into brand soundtracks

Digg is back… again.

The app has relaunched for a second time in months. Its previous open beta was shut down after being quickly overrun by bots.

The new platform drops the Reddit-style model and instead tracks sentiment around trending topics.

It’s currently focused on AI news and conversations.

Founder Kevin Rose says the vision is to expand beyond AI into a broader trend-tracking platform

Digg — what AI Twitter is paying attention to

What the smartest voices on X are paying attention to — a live ranking of 1,000 AI influencers and the stories they're surfacing.

Instagram ads are packed with “definitely not cocaine” products like designer bump straws and powder pouches 😱

Brands are blatantly using coded terms like “electrolytes” and “cacao” to dodge Meta’s drug ad rules.

Some accounts only vanished after journalists asked Meta why they were still running ads.

Platforms still can’t police wink-wink marketing built entirely around loopholes.

It Sure Seems Like These Instagram Ads Want You to Do Cocaine

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More WTF this week:

• Mark Zuckerberg has shared a Meta Connect playlist, sparking criticism of its “cringey college party” vibe with acts like Jack Harlow, Doja Cat, and EDM-style pop

• OnlyFans’ first-gen creators are retiring—and some are begging you to forget they exist

• The EU is to run a pilot scheme that will invite influencers to summits and ministerial meetings from July (prepare to be REALLY BORED, influencers)

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Lululemon is looking for a Global Social Media Analytics Specialist [Hybrid, Vancouver, BC, Canada]

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More social media jobs:

• English National Ballet needs a Social Media and Digital Officer [London, UK]

• The Open University is hiring a Social Media Manager [Milton Keynes, UK]

• The LTA is recruiting a Padel Social Media Content Producer [Roehampton, UK]

YouTube has published a handy playbook for creator marketing on the platform:
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More stats:

• NO MORE FAME: Gen Z is done chasing fame, new data revealed:
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  📈 Only 13% of Gen Z picked Zendaya as a role model; no one else hit double digits
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  📈 A huge 36% rejected all celebrity role models including creators like MrBeast, signaling a shift away from fame
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  📈 79% prefer a private life, while just 9% still want fame or public attention
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  📈 Just 5% want to be influencers, down sharply from earlier Gen Z ambitions
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• BIGSTACK: Substack has hit 500,000 paid subscriptions in the UK

• UP IN THE SKY: Sky News dominates reach on YouTube in the UK with 9 million users, ahead of the BBC with 8.4 million and Netflix with 7.9 million

• A WORRYING AMOUNT: Google, TikTok and Meta have sent over 70 million warnings to users searching for child sexual abuse material

• SCREWGLED: Meta claims Instagram is replacing Google for product discovery, with 92% of people using social apps for product discovery vs 79% for search engines

Threads appears to be bleeding users, while X is winning on every engagement metric 😮

New app data from Apptopia claims Threads has lost daily active users for 8 straight months.

X, meanwhile, reportedly grew daily users 22% globally and 28% in the US YoY in Q1 2026.

The report says X now beats Threads on time spent, sessions per user and retention.
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More social data, charted:

• PEAKED: The rise and fall of downloads of Elon Musk’s Grok app downloads

• BAD BUSINESS: Enterprise adoption of Grok looks poor versus other AI apps

• THINK BIG: The world’s biggest social media platforms in 2026

• BIG JOBS: How ‘creator’ compares to other career ambitions among Gen Z

• NO THANKS: What social media users worldwide do NOT want from brands on social media

Meta employees protest new mouse-tracking software days before mass layoffs

Meta employees distributed flyers at US offices protesting the company's new mouse-tracking software, days before its 20 May layoffs of roughly 8,000 staff.

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Also spotted this week…

• Meta’s planned job cuts and embracing of AI has unsurprisingly led to internal anger, anxiety, and job uncertainty. [New York Times $$$]

• LinkedIn is cutting 5% of its workforce in a reorganisation. [Quartz]

• UK MPs want social media treated more like unsafe toys than harmless apps. [The Register]

• The EU has backed Italy’s right to make Meta pay for news content. [NiemanLab]

• Spain is pressing ahead with tough AI and social media rules despite US lobbying. [TNW]

• A suicide forum has been fined £950,000 for not blocking UK users. [BBC News]

• Pinterest has upgraded its ad relevance model, combining real-time search behaviour with external conversion and browsing data. [Social Media Today]

• Amazon Prime Video has followed Netflix and Disney by adding a TikTok-like ‘Clips’ feed in its app. [TechCrunch]

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New features and tests:

• Facebook is testing a refreshed UX for creating and editing Reels. [@oncescruadu]

• Facebook now lets you edit and reorder Highlights [@theahmedghanem]

• Facebook has added a shortcut to Instagram Edits in the main Reels composer. [@oncescuradu]

• Instagram has been showing very large story reaction bubble. [@saadhjawwadh]

• Instagram is testing a new UX for the bottom navigation bar. [@oncescuradu]

• Instagram is testing a refreshed UI for the story composer. [@oncescuradu]

• Instagram now lets you customise your profile picture avatar with different poses and backgrounds. [@theahmedghanem]

• Instagram now allows you to receive notifications only for new messages and nothing else. [@theahmedghanem]

• Instagram’s “Hidden Requests” section is now called “Spam”. [@theahmedghanem]

• Instagram now lets you choose the location you want to receive voting reminders for. [@theahmedghanem]

• Instagram is promoting Edits in the Reels tab with a full-screen splash page. [@theahmedghanem]

• Meta Business Suite has a new logo [@theahmedghanem]

• WhatsApp is testing a feature that allows channel admins to reply to their updates. [WABetaInfo]

• WhatsApp is working on a new system to view chat lists. [@WABetaInfo]

• WhatsApp is working on a new design for message bubbles. [@WABetaInfo]

• WhatsApp is working on a feature that allows users to clean up storage in their channels. [@WABetaInfo]

• WhatsApp Business is testing a rename of Labels to Lists. [@theahmedghanem]

• Clubhouse has added new Karma and Earnings features. [@theahmedghanem]

YouTube Creators Are Working Outside Of The Old-School System To Become The New TV Stars

Next generation of YouTube creators like MrBeast, Kareem Rahma and Brittany Broski are working outside the system to become the new TV stars.

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Also worth a read:

• How short-form video 'clippers' are overrunning the internet

• Meet the YouTube whisperers, a booming class of advisors behind MrBeast and other million-dollar channels

• “Meta is dying. It’s about time“

• How Reddit is converting casual users into daily ones

• Smart glasses are 'an invasion of privacy' - Meta's are selling better than ever

• The TikTokification of streaming

At least some teens are ditching screens, craving real-world social connection instead.

The result? 90s stoner trend hacky sack has exploded among Gen Z teens!

The trend lives offline, but TikTok and Instagram are pouring fuel on the fire…

This '90s Gen X stoner trend is now a Gen Z obsession: the hacky sack

… And that’s everything you and your social team needs to know this week.

I’m heading off to urgently tweak my Instagram feed algorithm topics.

Instagram just showed me this… WTF, Mosseri! 😳 😂
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Goodbye, geeks!

P.S. This newsletter is edited by Martin SFP Bryant

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Hello, geeks!

Bear with me this week.

Tiny football detour before we get back to the usual social media chaos.

I’m still buzzing from my trip to the Emirates to watch Arsenal batter Fulham 3-0, thanks to WhatsApp.
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Instagram post

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Being invited into the WhatsApp suite was already a ridiculous privilege.

But what happened next absolutely blew my mind. And my 72-year-old father-in-law’s.

We arrived at the Emirates at 1pm and were taken on a VIP stadium tour, including the changing room, directors’ box, press room and a few other places most fans never get normally get access to.
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A few hours later, we headed up to the executive box, where we met a brilliant group of creators WhatsApp had also invited for the matchday experience.

Then, just when I thought the day had peaked, the WhatsApp team asked if we wanted to watch the players warm up before kick-off.

Minutes later, we were walking down the tunnel and out onto the pitch in front of a packed Emirates. Absolute “what is my life?” territory.

We wandered around pitchside, trying not to accidentally wander into Sky Sports’ live coverage, while fans presumably wondered who on earth are these nobodies, and why we were getting the full VIP treatment.
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Pitchside before kick-off with my father-in-law and creator @donalleniii

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Then we were standing just a few feet away from Saka, Rice, Dowman, Raya and the rest of the squad. To say I was living my best life is an understatement.

After that, we went back to the box for great food, endless drinks and some of the best seats in the stadium as Arsenal kept the pressure on Man City in the title race with a 3-0 win.

As a lifelong Arsenal fan, that alone was a bucket list moment.

But WhatsApp had one final surprise….

After the final whistle, we were ushered out of the box and told we were heading back down to the pitch…To meet Bukayo Saka. WTF!!

We waited pitchside for a few minutes while Declan Rice and Max Dowman warmed down just a few metres away. Nuts!

Then Saka casually appeared, hung out with us for 5-10 minutes, answered questions, signed shirts and took loads of selfies.
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It was all very, very surreal.

But one funny moment worth sharing was when Kiss FM DJ Ellie Prohan asked Saka to dab!

Here’s what it looked like in Ellie’s viral Reel:
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Instagram post

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And here’s what REALLY happened: 🤣
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Twitter tweet

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And, because the day apparently wasn’t ridiculous enough already, we also brushed past a few famous faces, including Piers Morgan and Sir Keir Starmer.

A HUGE thank you to the WhatsApp team for gifting us such an incredible day.
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And a big shoutout to the Arsenal partnerships team for making us feel like actual VIPs for the day.

👀 Watch BTS highlights of my wild day at Arsenal

__________

1 cool thing…

🔥 The NEW AI analytics tool social teams tell me is saving them from reporting hell!*

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Does this sound familiar…?

… Checking your social analytics dashboard 5x a day 😵‍💫

… Pulling endless data for performance updates 🤯

… Trying to explain to your boss why that Reel popped off 🔥

… Building yet another deck because the big boss asked, “So what’s working?” 😡

Meet Archer — the new AI data analyst from Measure Studio.

It’s built for social teams who need fast answers, not another dashboard to monitor.

Archer will help your social team:

• 🔍 Spot the creative patterns behind your best-performing content

•  📊 Track what’s working across formats, series, competitors + campaigns

•  📈 Instantly turn messy performance data into actual strategy

• 🪄  Create ready-to-share insight decks without the reporting doom spiral

• ✨ Get Archer’s answers where you work, inside Measure Studio, Claude, ChatGPT + more

Basically: less “digging through dashboards”, more “here’s what we do next.”

Social teams get answers in 30 seconds, not 30 minutes.

👉 The best bit…? You can try Archer 100% FREE for 2 weeks.

…If you love it, get 20% OFF your 1st year.

Elon Musk will settle the feds’ Twitter lawsuit with pocket change

Pay $1.5 million to (allegedly) save $150 million.

2. New Mexico drags Meta back to court seeking $3.7B for being a ‘public nuisance’ [LAWYERING]

3. Meta is building an AI agent called ‘Hatch’ to do work for users online [AUTOMATING]

4. French prosecutors escalate probe of Elon Musk and X to criminal investigation [LAW-BREAKING]

5. Snap officially ended its $400M AI partnership with Perplexity [SPLITTING]

Meta’s AI agent is a wakeup call for social media pros

Meta plans advanced ‘agentic’ AI assistant for consumers

The news this week from the FT (above) and The Information that Meta is building an AI agent that can carry out tasks online on users’ behalf got me thinking…

As The Information explains:

“Meta is training the OpenClaw-inspired agent, internally called “Hatch,” with the goal of internal testing by the end of June, one of the people said. The aim is for Hatch, the name of which might change once it is launched, to be able to perform a range of tasks for people. As part of its training work, for example, Meta has built “sandboxed” web environments where the agent can be tested on simulations of real websites such as DoorDash, Etsy, Reddit, Yelp, and Outlook, the person said.”

Whether ‘Hatch’ makes it out to users eventually in this form or not, the fact is AI tech is getting smarter and more capable, and it absolutely will change how we work as social media pros.

In the coming years, the best social media professionals will be leading AI-powered content production teams, NOT managing platforms and channels.

I've spent years watching this industry from the inside. Talking to platform teams, advising brands, tracking how the role has evolved.

Here's what I'm seeing: platforms are automating the tactical work. Scheduling, basic analytics, content suggestions, even caption writing. AI tools are handling more of the execution layer every month.

That means the value of a social media manager is no longer in knowing how to post at the right time or format a carousel.

The value is in judgment. It's in taste. Knowing what your brand should say when a platform changes its algorithm overnight.

The value is in understanding which trends to ignore and which ones actually matter for your audience. Making calls under pressure when something goes sideways.

Those are leadership skills, not platform skills.

Right now, most social teams are still structured like the work is primarily tactical. One person doing everything, or small teams split by platform.

But the companies that get this right over the next 12-18 months will start hiring social leads who think like attention strategists. They'll build teams around creative direction, community intelligence, and crisis response.

The job title might still say "Social Media Manager." But the actual work will look a lot more like leading a newsroom, media publisher, or running a brand studio.

This shift is already happening. I'm watching it play out in real time with the brands I advise.

If you're in this industry and you've been waiting for permission to think bigger than posting schedules, this is it. The question is whether you're building the skills that will matter when AI automation and agents go mainstream.

Photo by Mariia Shalabaieva on Unsplash

• Meta is going to war with UK regulator Ofcom over how it calculates massive fines

• Meta is being sued by five major publishers for allegedly training its AI on pirated books

• Meta is being investigated in Ireland over “dark patterns” in Instagram and Facebook

• Meta has snapped up AI robotics startup Assured Robot Intelligence to push deeper into humanoid AI tech

• Meta is strengthening end-to-end encrypted backups using secure hardware vaults across data centres

• Facebook is seeing a sudden engagement boom as it prioritises original content and monetisation to attract creators

• Facebook is reintroducing the Create button on iOS, bringing quick access to Live, Post, Reel, and Story options in one place

• Facebook has started categorising camera roll media types in the creation sheet.

• Facebook is testing a new splash screen that encourages you to send friend requests to people you’re not connected with

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Instagram Edits gets new creative tools

• Instagram Edits added new benchmarking insights, transcription controls, photo blending, and more

• Instagram faces a growing backlash as LGBTQ creators and sex workers report bans and shadowbans. Meta says it’s targeting explicit solicitation, but reversing mistaken bans is not easy

• Instagram has been spotted alerting users to an algorithm change that favours posts from followed accounts when you open the app

• Instagram is testing an option to swap out text in someone else’s Reels

• Instagram is now showing the chart position of every trending song added as a soundtrack in an Reel

• Instagram Edits has added an option to pin projects

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Threads new animated stickers flooding the feed | Credit: Threads

• Threads has a new animated text option, and its already starting to annoy, turning the feed into a epileptic nightmare!

• Threads is testing TikTok-style music sharing with playable stickers

• Threads will now automatically break large blocks of pasted text into a thread of posts

• Threads has exceeded 150 million daily active users, but monetisation is still the long game for Meta

• Threads is rolling out DMs on the web

• Threads is expanding trending topics to more countries

• Threads is working on a new way to create tags on Android

• Threads now lets you choose whether replies to ghost posts appear publicly on the post or privately in messages

• Threads has been spotted testing a tweaked icon (and on Instagram). Is a new logo in the works?

• Threads added a new ‘Like’ animation for posts tagged with “Met Gala”.

• WhatsApp is working on the ability to archive status updates after they expire

• WhatsApp now prompts you to choose what you want to clear when selecting “Clear Chat,” with options to delete only media files or the entire conversation

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Photo by BoliviaInteligente on Unsplash

• TikTok users can now buy movie tickets in-app, starting with Billie Eilish’s new film

• TikTok advertisers can now access 1.1M+ real-world ad placement locations, include Times Square

• TikTok launched a refreshed UI for Creator Search Insights

• TikTok now lets you copy a post’s caption or search directly from it by long-pressing on the text

• YouTube is testing a major mobile redesign, shifting Home and Subscriptions to the top

• YouTube is testing dynamic auto-sized video and thumbnails to make mobile feeds more immersive

• YouTube TV dodged another content blackout with a last-minute content deal to keep The Weather Channel, Comedy TV and more on the platform

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LinkedIn’s new ad agency certification | Credit: LinkedIn

• LinkedIn launched a global Ads Agency Certification to separate real LinkedIn ad experts from the rest

• LinkedIn’s “who viewed you” feature faces legal challenge in the EU, where a privacy group says the late means it should be free

• LinkedIn fixed a long-standing issue where PDF carousels appeared to degrade after upload despite looking fine in preview

• LinkedIn and Amazon are teaming up to bring job-targeted ads to connected TVs

• Twitch embraced the “mogging” trend, updating its rules to allow streams powered by Omoggle, which compares users’ looks using AI in live video matchups.

• Twitch is rolling out stricter penalties for viewbotting

Meta is expanding AI age checks across Instagram, Facebook, and Messenger to better enforce its 13+ rule.

AI will now analyse posts, bios, comments, and activity signals to catch those who enter a fake birthday.

Meta will also analyse users’ bone structure, height, and visual clues to detect under-13s.

__________

Also spotted this week…

• Instagram plans to launch an AI shopping tool enabling tap-to-buy from Reels and feeds

• Instagram is testing optional “AI creator” labels to improve transparency around AI-generated content

• YouTube is testing a new AI music generator tool that lets creators instantly swap out copyrighted songs with royalty-free audio

• xAI launched Grok 4.3 with powerful voice cloning tools and more

• Google’s AI search summaries will now quote Reddit and other online sources

• ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, is launching paid plans for its ChatGPT rival Doubao in China

• Bumble is scrapping swiping entirely, calling it a tired, broken way to date. The app will switch to AI matchmaking

Meta’s $375 million loss in its New Mexico trial may be just the start, with a new trial phase underway.

New Mexico is seeking sweeping changes: age verification, under-18 limits, encryption restrictions, and reduced infinite scroll.

Oh, and Meta says the AG’s office is seeking “approximately $3.7 billion in abatement costs as well as injunctive relief” 🤯

AG Raúl Torrez said fines alone won’t shift behaviour, calling them a “cost of doing business.”

A ruling could force product redesigns and set a precedent across the tech industry.

Meta’s historic loss in court could cost a lot more than $375 million

__________

Also:

• Meta wants a judge to throw out the landmark social media addiction verdict in California. Meta argues Section 230 shields it, insisting “content,” not features like autoplay, caused harm.

Snapchat’s global growth in Q1 masks a worrying trend…

• Snapchat hit 483 million daily users, adding 9M new users in Q1 — but growth is masking a bigger problem.
  -

-

• Snapchat use in core markets is shrinking, losing 2M users in North America, and 1M in Europe.

• New users are coming from lower-value regions, where ad revenue is weaker.

• Revenue rose +12% to ~$1.53B, driven by ads (esp. +30% growth in Dynamic Product Ads).

• Teen social media bans = real threat — with 415K Snapchat accounts wiped out in Australia alone.

• Snap’s CEO Evan Spiegel calls it a “crucible moment” as growth slows and pressure builds.

• Snap’s big bets (more ads, subscriptions, AR glasses) all have limits — but none are guaranteed to fix declining core usage.

Snapchat usage declined in the US and EU in Q1

__________

Pinterest Q1 Results:
-

-

• Pinterest’s stock spiked nearly 20% after posting strong Q1 results and an upbeat outlook, with revenue hitting $1.01 billion

• Pinterest grew to 631M users, adding 12M new users mostly outside the US and EU.

• Revenue rose 18% YoY to over $1B, beating expectations.

• Pinterest’s CEO says AI-driven “Taste Graph” fuels “ten straight quarters” of growth.

• Ad impressions rose 24%, but ad pricing fell 5% year-over-year.

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The annual Met Gala is an absolute magnet for memes.

And this year’s event didn’t disappoint with its ‘fashion is art’ dress code…
-

Twitter tweet

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Twitter tweet

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Twitter tweet

Find more Met Gala meme goodness at Rolling Stone or Indy100.

Instagram’s BIG bot purge just hit…

What was going on this week on Instagram with all those celebrity follower drops?

Celebs who lost the most Instagram followers, as Selena and Ariana drop millions overnight

Some big-name celebrities lost millions of followers overnight. The Daily Mail broke out a list of the biggest losers.

• Instagram itself lost the most, down 10.9M followers

• Cristiano Ronaldo lost 6.6M

• Kim Kardashian lost 5.1M

• Beyonce dropped 4.4M
  - 

-__________

-
Don’t worry if any of your accounts were affected…

…Meta told The Tab it was a routine purge:

“…As part of our routine process to remove inactive accounts, some Instagram accounts may have noticed updates to their follower counts. Active followers remain unaffected, and any restored suspended account will be included in the count again after verification…”

Move over, sponsorships…

Some big creators are shifting to equity deals with brands to future-proof their income by taking an ownership stake.

Some micro influencers find promising security in brand ownership over sponsorships

__________

More brand news and views:

• Why so many creators are joining the C-suite at big-name brands, with titles like “chief creative officer” and “chief kindness officer”

• How TikTok Shop is winning over major brands

__________

Also quoted this week:

“Elon won, and a trust entity took a small fine, without admitting anything, for being some days late on a filing. Case closed.”

- Elon Musk’s lawyer Alex Spiro summarises the outcome of Elon’s legal battle against the SEC over how he carried out his Twitter acquisition

__________

“If we end up with a large percentage of the users lurking in the feed and chatting in the DMs … I think that's totally great”

- Meta’s Head of Threads Connor Hayes is cool with lurkers

This is an interesting look at how generative AI is transforming the creator economy.

Lots of insights in here worth perusing!

The state of generative AI in the creator economy

A look at how the creator economy is using generative AI, from workflow help to identifying partnerships in DMs.

__________

Also worth a read:

• RIP social media. What comes next is messy

TikTok has launched a global ad campaign to cement its role as a shopping powerhouse.

The campaign’s tagline “Watch it. Love it. Want it.” signals the platform’s shift from entertainment towards commerce.

@tiktokforbusiness

Today marks a new chapter as we introduce our new global positioning: Watch it. Love it. Want it. 💛 TikTok is the place where attention tu... See more

Following X scrapping the Communities feature, Acorn has launched a decentralised, creator-first alternative.

Built on Bluesky’s AT Protocol, it gives full control over feeds, moderation, and data.

Features include starter packs, custom feeds, analytics, badges, and anti-troll tools.

As X shuts down Communities, Acorn debuts an alternative that puts creators in control

The dark side of the microdrama boom?

Real actors turning up in AI-generated sex scenes 😬

Actors speak out against AI-generated promos that put them in fake sex scenes

__________

More WTF this week:

• US state healthcare sites have been caught sending citizens’ data to Meta and TikTok

• Christian content creators are outsourcing AI slop to gig workers on Fiverr

• Why are so many influencers speaking at Harvard Business School?

• Actors are speaking out against AI-generated microdrama promos that put them in fake sex scenes

• Scammers posing as ICE agents and attorneys are targeting US immigrants through WhatsApp

TikTok is scaling back its AI video summaries after bizarre, viral misfires.

The feature called Charli D’Amelio “a collection of various blueberries with different toppings.” 🤣

Other clips were mislabeled as “origami art” or random shapes, sparking a user backlash.

TikTok has confirmed it will refocus the feature on identifying products in videos.

TikTok is pulling back on an AI feature that went haywire

TikTok is pulling back on an AI feature that added wildly inaccurate text summaries to videos from users like Charli D'Amelio and Shakira.

__________

Also this week:

• Facebook account lockouts are surging as AI moderation treats everyday actions like suspicious activity

• A YouTube bug has been sending browsers into meltdown with an endless lag loop

WhatsApp is killing off its Metaverse-inspired ‘Avatars’ feature after years of low engagement.

Editing tools are disappearing first, with full removal of avatars, stickers, and profile options underway.

__________

Also heading to the graveyard:

• PSA: As previously announced, Instagram’s encrypted DM support is disappearing today due to low usage.

• While it’s bad for privacy, the fact is Instagram barely ever surfaced the feature to users in the app anyway

Airbnb is looking for a Social Lead (Instagram) [Remote, USA]

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More social media jobs:

• USA Today needs a Social Media and Engagement Content Strategy Analyst [Remote, USA]

• London’s Air Ambulance is hiring a Social and Digital Media Manager (Maternity Cover) [Hybrid, London, UK]

• WWF is recruiting a Social Media Executive [Hybrid, Woking, UK]

Is your reach dropping on Facebook?

@cmcalgary spotted this in-app checklist for posts.

According to insights from the tool, these are good guidelines to follow.

Your mileage may vary (these things change a lot!), but it’s worth a try.

• Posts need to have an image (just 1)

• Images need to be 4:5 or 1:91:1 ratio

• The topic needs to be clearly explained, even if it seems obvious

• 10-400 characters

• No Random Capitalized Letters

• Max of 6 hashtags
  -

__________

More pro tips:

• Reddit published a 13-page playbook to help small businesses tap ad tools and communities

__________

More social stats:

• FOUNDIT: Reddit’s investment in search is paying off, with usage rising 30% year-over-year

• AD IT UP: Social video ad spend is set to grow 13% in 2026, beating CTV’s 11% growth

• X DANGER: X remains the most dangerous platform for LGBTQ users. It scored just 29/100 in GLAAD’s 2026 index.

• CLICK HERE: TikTok users are heavily influenced by affiliate content, with 77% searching products after seeing them in videos

• TEACHERTUBE: YouTube dominates US classrooms, with 94% of teachers using it and Chromebooks driving access

• SOCIAL NEWS: 57% of US teens say they get news from social daily, vs 36% of adults

• TIKTOK POLITICS: Right-leaning accounts saw 11.5% more aligned content during the 2024 US election, while left-leaning feeds were 7.5% more likely to see opposing views

• MR LONELY: A study of 1,500 US adults aged 30–70 found social media isn’t easing loneliness. About 35% of connections are strangers, which are linked to higher loneliness

Social media teams are reporting a sudden and unexplained spike in Facebook engagement…

Rachel Karten spotlighted the spike in her Link In Bio newsletter, with insights from a handful of brands benefiting from the boost:
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__________

More social stats, charted:

• PIN-UP: Pinterest’s user growth charted

• AI DON’T LIKE IT: Unlabeled AI content is now the #1 social media turn-off, with 28% of users calling it out

• NOT A DOCTOR: Half of Americans under 50 now get health advice from influencers or podcasts

• INSTAHEALTH: Where you’ll find the most health and wellness influencers online

EU must go beyond ‘binary yes or no ban’ on social media, top official says

The EU is edging toward restricting kids’ access to social media, as leaders say a blanket ban won’t work.

Also in the news this week:

• The FTC has settled with Media Matters after the watchdog group claimed agency retaliation for an article about Elon Musk’s X. [Deadline]

• Meta is rolling out AI support programmes to get small and rural businesses using its AI tools. [Social Media Today]

__________

New features and tests:

• X updated message requests in both the main app and the chat app, now showing requests across two separate tabs. [@theahmedghanem]

• X is promoting X and Grok as an app package in the App Store. [@oncescuradu]

• OnlyFans is rolling out category hubs to make finding creators easier in categories beyond adult content. [Tubefilter]

“No longer reserved for celebrities like Charli xcx and Bad Bunny, wiping your Instagram grid has become a way for ordinary users to reclaim control over an internet that feels ‘too permanent’.”

The case for wiping your Instagram grid

__________

Also a great long read this weekend:

• Creator empires are cracking as fame fails to scale into real businesses

• Your feed is overrun with clips. This is the cutthroat community of “clippers” behind it

• The 16-year-old teen secretly running her mom’s influencer empire

• How BookTok is reshaping Hollywood

• Time limits, curfews or a full ban: how the UK may restrict social media for under-16s

• Why TikTok’s comments section is driving the majority of first purchases right now

You’ve got to respect the ingenuity of kidz 🤣

Teens in the UK are easily bypassing social media age verification restrictions — using fake birthdays…

And disguises like fake moustaches! 🥸

Some children are drawing on fake moustaches to bypass online age checks, report says

A third of children in the UK have bypassed age verification gates, research from Internet Matters suggests

And that is everything new in social media land this week.

Apologies for the Arsenal fan-boy behaviour in this week’s Geekout.

Normal service will resume next week.

I’m heading off to see if i can sweet talk Piers Morgan into securing me Champions League Final tickets in Budapest for Arsenal vs. PSG. 😁

Instagram post

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Goodbye, geeks!

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P.S. This newsletter is edited by Martin SFP Bryant

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Hello, geeks!

Welcome to your weekly social media news debriefing.

I have had one of the wildest week’s of work. 🤯

-
In the past seven days I have been…

• ⚽️ Gifted x2 exec box tickets for an Arsenal match (thanks WhatsApp!)

• 🎟️ Invited to attend Cannes LIONS by two different brands

• 💼 Asked to consult for a major global tech company

This is not normal! But I feel very lucky.

After a pretty brutal few years personally, it does feel like some good karma has finally stopped being “in review” and decided to ship.

But better than all of that?

My fiancée Sarah has finally moved in with me, after two years of us having to manage a long-distance relationship.

It feels like i’m starting a new chapter in my life, and i think it’s going to be the best one yet.

BTW… Don’t miss this! 👇

I think I made a BIG mistake. This is wild.

It involves a celebrity DJ, a wild Instagram DM I sent, and a surprising offer.

Skip to the very end of this week’s Geekout to discover which famous DJ, and what TF happened! 🙈

__________

Snapchat CEO vs. Instagram Overlord

Earlier this week, Snap CEO Evan Spiegel was asked how he feels about rival platforms copy/pasting its best features.

And by “rival platforms”, we all know we mean Meta.

The company that saw Snapchat Stories and thought: “What if we simply… stole that?”

Spiegel didn’t exactly hold back.

He immediately called out Meta’s latest Snapchat copy/paste job: Instagram Plus.
-

Twitter tweet

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If you’re wondering how Instagram overlord Adam Mosseri feels about the Snap CEO’s comment…
-

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Make of that what you will.

P.S… Don’t miss this. The 1st one is 👌👇

2 cool things…

• 🚨 Your brand’s Instagram account just got hacked! — what TF do you do? — These insights might save your career.*
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Your Brand Account Just Got Hacked! — What Now? 😱

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You know that nightmare every social media manager has?

A colleague sends you fear-inducing DM
Your brand account is posting porn on X!
Customers commenting “WTF is this!?”
Screenshots are being shared.
Your boss wants answers.

And you’re thinking… “How TF do we fix this?!?” 😱

Most social disasters don’t start with one big mistake. They come from small security gaps:

• Too many people with account access

• Old agency, freelancer or employee logins still floating around

• Fake “account violation” messages that look convincingly real

So… I’m hosting a FREE workshop on what marketers can learn from big brand social disasters.

Who will be joining me?:

• Naveh Ben Dror, CEO of Spikerz — former criminal investigator turned social threat expert.

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We’ll unpack real social media hacking incidents from Disney, to Dior, to Drake…

You’ll learn:

• 🚨 What to do in the first 5 minutes after a hack

• 🔐 The access mistakes putting accounts at risk

• 🤖 How AI is changing phishing + impersonation

• ✅ The security checks every social team should run this month
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Instagram Cracks Down on Accounts That Mostly Post Unoriginal Content

Meta's Instagram is now cracking down on the upload of the unoriginal content in photos and carousel posts.

2. China blocks Meta's $2bn acquisition of AI startup Manus [GEO-POLITICKING]

3. Meta user numbers dip for first time ever, but its ad machine keeps booming [GHOSTING]

4. UK Government signals sweeping social media restrictions for teens [CURBING]

5. Meta found in breach of EU law for failing to keep kids off Facebook + Instagram [RULE-BREAKING]

Can Instagram clean up without making a mess?

Instagram cracks down on content aggregators

Surely it can’t be a coincidence that this happened the same day that it was revealed that Facebook and Instagram are starting to lose users…?

Instagram has announced it is expanding rules that limit the reach of accounts that rehash other people’s content. This was already in place for Reels but now it will apply to photos and carousels too.

As The Verge put it, “Instagram says it doesn’t want your tweet round ups”.

TechCrunch explains: “The update targets content aggregators that don’t post original content and instead simply re-upload others’ posts. By limiting the reach of these accounts, Instagram is looking to boost originality on its app while also working to prevent the same posts from being circulated over and over again.”

Low-quality content is like low-quality fast food. It might satisfy you in the short term, but it doesn’t nourish you and make you want to consume it again. Clearing aggregators out of our feeds is a positive step for the long-term appeal of Instagram.

But what about accounts that take existing content and do something fresh with it? Instagram says this is fine and good:

“When meme creators add humor, social commentary, cultural references, or a relatable take by incorporating elements such as unique text, creative edits, and voiceover on a photo or video, they’re producing something original.

“The best meme creators take third-party content and make it unmistakably theirs by layering in a perspective, joke, or context that wasn’t there before. This is the kind of creativity we want to continue rewarding.”

The real question is whether Meta’s AI is good enough and reliable enough to consistently tell the difference between lazy screenshots of other people’s jokes and skilfully adding value to existing content.

I can imagine some really good accounts getting throttled accidentally here, with no easy way of getting the damage undone.

Either way, a lot of accounts are going to have to rethink their strategy if they want to keep getting reach on Instagram. Whether that brings growth back to the platform remains to be seen.

Getty Images

• The US government ended an investigation into whether Meta could read WhatsApp messages

• Meta is auto-blocking content instantly, at scale, in some countries including India

• Meta says your age is no longer a good guide for how you’ll use its platforms. Your life stage is a better indicator

• Meta threatened to pull its apps out of New Mexico if it is forced to make “technically impractical” changes, such as no end-to-end encryption for children’s chats

• Meta re-entered crypto, launching stablecoin payouts for Facebook creators using USDC

• Meta is cracking down on hidden fees in third-party ad platforms

• Meta now lets you post directly to Threads from Meta Business Suite

• Facebook has been spotted offering a new navigation bar at the top of the app

• Facebook is again testing a redesigned UI for profiles and pages featuring a centred profile picture and a larger cover image

• Facebook now supports a 3x video playback speed

• Facebook now allows users to mention people in Stories cross-posted from Instagram.

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Instagram font pickers for DMs | Credit: @alex193a

• Instagram extended its original content rules to photos and carousels. Accounts posting recycled memes, tweet dumps, copied visuals will lose Explore and feed reach…

  … And Instagram published a new guide to original content for creators

• Instagram is working on new Instagram Plus perks like seeing the exact time someone posted a Story, pinning more posts on your grid, and sneaking a view at a DM without it showing as ‘seen’

  …It could also let paid subscribers choose a custom app icon

• Instagram could soon let you change the font in DMs

• Instagram’s new Instants app is doing well in Latin America, Adam Mosseri says

• Instagram is testing new insights that reveal the metrics affecting your views. These include skip rate, share rate and repost rate.

• Instagram could soon let you edit stories after posting, but the original post will be deleted and all stats will be reset

• Instagram is now promoting upcoming songs from artists with a special design for the music player and account name

• Instagram Edits has added new text customisation and saved effects

• Instagram Edits is testing the ability to try different edits by creating multiple versions of a video

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Threads' upgraded Markup tool | Credit: alex193a

• Threads is testing the ability to add emoji reactions to specific words in posts, with an upgraded Markup tool

• Threads now lets you auto-share your posts to your Instagram Story

• Threads now incorporates trends into the search page and For You feed for US users

• Threads has added improved tagging for NBA games

• Threads is working on ‘Link styles’ to customise how link previews look in your posts

• WhatsApp is building a first-party cloud backup system to replace reliance on Google Drive

• WhatsApp now lets Indian users top up their mobile phone credit in the app

• WhatsApp is testing status updates at the top of the Chats tab

• WhatsApp is working on Android notification bubble support

• WhatsApp is working on a feature that lets admins share status updates in their channels

• WhatsApp is working on a feature that brings channels into a dedicated list in the Chats tab

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X officially launches X Chat app | Credit: X

• X has officially launched X Chat, its standalone messaging app for iOS users

  …but it’s more like Messenger than a rival to Signal

• X is upgrading its ad platform, leaning on AI to improve targeting and campaign workflows

• X’s banking feature, X Money is close to launch with features like 3% cashback, 6% savings interest., and free transfers

• X now clearly credits the original creator on reshared videos

• X is rolling out a new video control menu

• Elon Musk testified in court that xAI " partly" trained Grok on OpenAI models, something he said is normal industry practice

__________

TikTok’s ‘Campus Hub’ feature for U.S students | Credit: TikTok

• TikTok is rolling out ‘Campus Hub,’ connecting students across 6,000+ US universities

• TikTok paused testing of its “Meme Remixer” AI feature on after backlash from creators

• TikTok rolled out the ability for you to self-manage search keywords on your videos, helping you influence what you rank for

• TikTok Shop was busy rolling out livestream, AI, and automation features throughout April

• TikTok’s official BookTok bestseller list has launched in the UK, with Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid topping the first list

• TikTok is introducing a new ‘Redeem with Tiles’ feature for livestreamers

• TikTok removed the Posts section for some users. Posts can now be viewed and managed from the Profile page

• TikTok will be adding custom, temporary chat bubbles for the teams participating in the 2026 FIFA World Cup

• TikTok now lets musicians verify their accounts simply by linking to a verified Spotify profile

• TikTok now shows you when your profile was verified

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YouTube TV’s Multiview feature | Credit: YouTube

• YouTube TV officially launched fully customisable multiview across its channel lineup

  …but the feature has some major limitations

• YouTube picture-in-picture is finally rolling out to everyone, but free access excludes music content

• YouTube’s new livestream ads keep the video you’re watching visible… but completely override the audio 🤦‍♂️

• YouTube is experimenting with auto-resizing thumbnails to boost engagement

• YouTube has banned two channels run by ‘looksmaxxer’ Braden “Clavicular” Peters for repeated violations

• YouTube stopped showing homepage recommendations for users with paused watch history, promoting you to enable yours (but there’s a workaround)

• Google TV is adding a YouTube Shorts row to its homepage feed

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Netflix’s new TikTok-style vertical clips feed | Credit: Netflix

• Netflix is rolling out its new vertical “Clips” feed, mimicking TikTok-style scrolling discovery

• LinkedIn now lets you filter comments on posts by verified users

• LinkedIn is expanding Event Ads to promote off-platform events in feed, including webinars and livestreams

• LinkedIn has been spotted recommending similar videos based on what you have watched before

• Reddit sparked a backlash after breaking its mobile site to force app downloads

• Pinterest launched its first CTV ad product letting brands target its audiences off-platform

• Patreon is evolving from a membership tool to a full discovery platform including short-form ‘Quip’ videos, a new home feed, collabs, and more

• Tinder introduced iris scans to verify human users and fight AI generated profiles

Google is trying out an AI Mode-like search experience for YouTube.

‘Ask YouTube’ is a new way to search that generates an AI Mode-like page of information.

Google is testing AI chatbot search for YouTube

Get ready to “Ask YouTube.”

__________

Also spotted this week…

• Snapchat launched AI Sponsored Snaps, enabling brands to embed AI agents directly into user’s chats

• Mark Zuckerberg says Meta is working on AI agents for personal and business use

• Instagram Edits has integrated AI video generation: creators can generate clips from text prompts, images, or existing videos instantly

• Meta is rolling out AI connectors, linking ad accounts with tools like ChatGPT and Claude

• WhatsApp is introducing AI Agents for its business app. The agents can respond to customers 24/7, and more

• TikTok has rolled out AI dubbing into different languages

• xAI has added a new “Reimagine” feature for videos in the Grok app

• Adobe launched an agentic Firefly AI Assistant that can use 60+ tools across Creative Cloud apps

• Adobe introduced AI-powered object rotation in Photoshop, letting users rotate assets in 3D with realistic lighting

• CapCut rolled out AI Characters. You can now turn yourself into a character, add a voice and create content.

Meta’s user numbers have dropped for first time ever

• Daily active users for its family of social apps fell to 3.56B in Q1 2026, down from 3.58B in Q4

• Meta says the drop was driven by WhatsApp restrictions in Russia and internet disruptions in Iran.

• Despite the dip, Meta still reaches over a third of the global population daily.

• Meta generated $56.3B in revenue (+33% YoY), showing strong monetisation despite lower usage.

• Meta plans to spend up to $145B on AI in 2026, doubling last year’s $72B — and investors aren’t thrilled

• Meta says its business AI now facilitates 10M conversations a week

• Meta’s Reality Labs lost over $4 billion in Q1 2026

• Mark Zuckerberg called it a “milestone quarter” as Meta doubles down on AI growth.

Meta’s daily active user count declined in Q1 2026

The Instagram and Facebook owner saw its first decline in daily active usage ever, which it claims is due to new restrictions in some regions.

__________

More Q1 2026 result highlights…

YouTube:

• YouTube hit nearly $10 billion in Q1 ad revenue, growing +10.7% YOY

• YouTube Premium now has 125M+ subscribers and continues to see strong growth

• YouTube now generates $60B+ annually across ads and subscriptions, making it one of the largest media businesses globally.

• YouTube TV has grown to 10M+ subscribers, making it a major pay-TV platform in the US.

• YouTube says 200M+ hours of content are watched daily on YouTube and 10M+ channels upload Shorts every day.

__________

LinkedIn:

• LinkedIn’s revenue grew +12% YoY, powered by B2B ads and AI hiring tools.

• It now claims 1.3B members, but still refuses to share active user numbers

• Content is ramping up, with posts up 14% YoY and more knowledge-sharing.

• Paid video is up 30% YoY as creators and brands lean into video.

__________

Reddit:

• Reddit posted a huge 69% revenue growth to $663M in Q1 2026.

• Reddit now has 126.8M daily users, up 17% YoY, and nearly 500M weekly users, up +23% YOY.

Weird plush toy Emy has taken over Instagram with viral stunt content.

There's a new ugly little plush toy winning the internet

-
I explained to Business Insider how the viral account used interactive hunts, memes, and challenges to hook Gen Z…
-

Instagram post

__________

__________

Big news events almost always seem to bring out the engagement-hungry conspiracy theorists…

And last weekend’s gunman at the White House Correspondents Dinner was no exception.

Social media lit up with ‘information’ about the alleged shooter. He’s worked for almost every US sports team, apparently!

Busy boy.

Twitter tweet

It’s primetime for conspiracy theorist video creators

Conspiracists in cars getting views.

__________

Also viral this week:

• A viral TikTok video with 1.4 million views shows a Walmart item price changing in real time. But Walmart says it doesn’t change prices dynamically for individual customers, as the video claims

• A Staples employee went viral on TikTok for turning office supplies into content gold

• A viral TikTok trend has creators “speed running” through Scientology buildings in Hollywood

Brands like Skittles are creating content designed to be clipped into viral short-form moments.

What makes brand content worth clipping?

__________

More brand news and views:

• Alcohol brands like Malibu are rushing onto TikTok in the US after new age-gating rules made the platform viable for advertising

• Social media remains central to advertising, but risks are rising as moderation standards weaken

  ….but: Omnicom’s new tool uses agentic AI to tweak influencer content for brand standards in real time

• Brands like Ralph Lauren, Ulta, Olaplex, and L’Oréal are piling onto TikTok Shop as they chase growth

• Brands are ditching pure TV ad spend, switching to podcasts instead ahead of the World Cup.

• How Home Depot helps advertisers reach DIY audiences on Reddit and Pinterest

• How advertisers are thinking about Meta’s affiliate tool rollout

__________

Also quoted this week:

“Control your propensity to use social media to make things worse outside this courtroom”

- The judge overseeing the court case Elon Musk has brought against OpenAI tells Musk, Altman, and co to keep the drama in the courtroom

__________

“It’s very simple: it’s not okay to steal a charity. That’s my view and moreover if the defendants are found not guilty, this case will become case law. It will become precedent and give precedent to looting every charity in America.”

- Elon Musk was typically OTT in court as the OpenAI trial began

__________

“There’s no artificial intelligence without actual intelligence. The knowledge has to come from somewhere, and Reddit is one of the primary sources for that sort of information that AIs crave, but also that people crave.”

- Reddit CEO Steve Huffman explains how the company sees itself in the AI age

__________

“28 days of hell”

- A Meta employee describes the impact of the company pre-announcing massive layoffs a month ahead

__________

“A government-mandated transfer of wealth from one industry to another, with no connection to the value exchanged, will not deliver a sustainable or innovative news sector.”

- Meta hits back at Australian plans to force big tech to pay to link to news publishers (yep, that dumb old chestnut)

__________

“I just saw Instagram Plus launch… the latest rip… we just hit 25M subscribers on Snapchat+, more than $1B revenue run rate. So it was probably enough to get Meta's attention that it's a good time to copy"

- Evan Spiegel is never afraid to call out when Instagram copies Snapchat

__________

“People are massively underestimating the role that human adoption and human comfort with advances in artificial intelligence will determine its deployment. I think technology leaders think that folks will just blindly adopt new technology as it comes out."

- Evan Spiegel offered a reality check on AI hype

If you think running a celebrity fan page on social media is a cakewalk, think again.

Running celeb fan pages has become a 24/7 grind, with nonstop posting and monitoring….

What it's like to run a celebrity social media fan account

__________

Also:

• Marketers face an urgent need to restructure social teams to keep up with channel scope

Vine is back thanks to Jack Dorsey’s reboot Divine, which opened to the public this week.

Divine brings back 500,000 archived classic Vine videos on iOS, Android.

Users can post new six-second loops, build compilations, explore hashtags.

The platform blocks AI content, focusing on real creators and authentic internet culture.

Jack Dorsey-backed Vine reboot Divine launches to the public

__________

Also this week:

• OG social media app Friendster has relaunched in stripped-back form, with no ads, no algorithm, and a real-world focus

• Meet Shapes, the app bringing humans and AI into the same group chats

This is a WILD bug.

Facebook users have reported a bizarre glitch that adds Gen Z slang to their posts.

Random phrases like “That design is so cooked!” appear with no user input.

Meta confirmed it’s investigating, pointing to AI caption features as the likely culprit.

No official fix exists, so users must manually delete the cringe after posting.

Is Facebook adding Gen Z phrases to your shared posts? You're not alone, bestie. Here's what's happening.

__________

More WTF this week:

• A US seventh grader reportedly logged 13,000 YouTube views between Dec 2024 and Feb 2025 on a school device

• Taylor Swift and Rihanna deepfakes are pushing scams on TikTok

• Top chefs have warned that viral cooking videos are diverting young talent from traditional culinary training

• Meta is running get-rich-quick ads for its AI tools

Yikes…! Canva has apologised after its AI tool replaced the word ‘Palestine’ with ‘Ukraine’ in users’ designs.

Canva apologizes after its AI tool replaces ‘Palestine’ in designs

How does this even happen?

BBC CBeebies needs a Social Media Executive [Salford, UK]

__________

More social media jobs:

• Change.org is hiring a Social Media Specialist [Remote, Canada]

• Mind is looking for a Senior Social Media Officer [London, UK]

• thatgamecompany is recruiting for a Social Media Manager [Remote, US and Canada]

Responsible for growing an Instagram account right now?

These are the tools you need to check out, curated by Buffer.

24 Free Instagram Tools to Help Grow Your Account in 2026

__________

Also this week:

• Hootsuite analysed 60M+ social posts to understand how snack behaviour is shifting on social media

__________

More social stats:

• SCAM NATION: A new FTC report reveals Americans lost $2.1 billion to social media scams in 2025, up 8x since 2020

• BIG NEWS: The BBC is now the largest English language news publisher on YouTube with 19.7 million subscribers

• REEL DEAL: Instagram Reels now deliver one-third of social ad impressions

• AD IT UP: Google, Meta and Amazon took two thirds of £46bn UK 2025 adspend

• WATCH IT: YouTube leads video platform reach in the US with 83% of Gen Z and 78% of Millennials using it

• WATCH TOGETHER: 57% of US parents co-view YouTube with their teen(s) multiple times a week

• DOOM’S ROLE: Doomscrolling affects 64% of Americans, harming focus, sleep, mental health

A new Harvard study shows rage wins on X, with angry political posts surging…

Data shows anger has exploded on X, with political posts rising from 20% to 50%

Analysis of 3M posts from 1.4M users confirmed outrage now dominates both content and reactions on Musk’s platform.

The data also revealed angry posts drive higher repost rates and increase support for divisive political policies

The shift accelerated after 2016, reinforcing X as a rage-fueled platform

__________

Also charted this week:

• MAPPED: Social media use among Europe’s youth

• TOP SUBS: the Top 20 English language news publishers on YouTube

• THEY’VE ALL REDDIT: Reddit’s user growth

• GET BACK TO ME: Comment replies dominate as creators’ top engagement tool

• REVVING: YouTube ad revenue, charted

• WINNING: Meta’s ad revenue, charted

• LOSING: Quarterly losses at Meta’s Reality Labs, charted

• AI WORRIES: AI is the new brand safety crisis in 2026

• BOOSTED: Brands are about to spend more boosting creator content than creators earn making it

Meta just told staff it isn't ruling out further layoffs

Meta may cut more jobs beyond its planned 10% layoffs, HR chief Janelle Gale told staff, saying that morale has been hit.

__________

Also spotted this week…

• Meta joined forces with the FBI, Dubai Police, and global agencies to smash a crypto scam network. [Social Media Today]

• Meta is exploring expansion into CTV advertising, having held partner talks since early 2025. [DigiDay $$$]

• Meta signed a deal with Overview Energy to beam solar power from space using satellites. [TechCrunch]

• Meta will run some servers longer in response to memory shortage. [Wall Street Journal $$$]

• Personal finance guru Martin Lewis says Meta scam ads stealing his name are “worse than ever”. [Press Gazette]

• The EU is pushing member countries to adopt its age-verification app to enforce social media restrictions. [Politico]

• UK Liberal Democrats have proposed banning MPs from earning money through X. [The Guardian]

• Greece is pushing to kill anonymous social media accounts ahead of elections. [CNet]

• The Canadian province of Manitoba could ban social media and AI chatbots for kids. [Engadget]

• Two college kids have raised a $5.1 million pre-seed round to build an AI social network in iMessage. [TechCrunch]

• Over 700 workers at Meta contractor Covalen in Ireland face layoffs as AI expands. [Wired $$$]

• Pinterest is rewriting its AI playbook with a hybrid approach, mixing open-source, closed, and proprietary models. [Business Insider $$$]

• Evan Spiegel says AI now generates over two-thirds of Snap’s new code. [Business Insider $$$]

• Former X CEO Linda Yaccarino still defends her old employer. [AdWeek $$$]

AI influencers are exploding on TikTok and Instagram, letting anyone fake fame fast.

Users are creating avatars to chase brand deals, sometimes altering race, age, identity to boost reach.

Despite backlash, engagement, followers, and revenue keep flowing to AI personas.

A.I. Is Making Influencing Even Faker

Across social media, an influx of A.I.-generated avatars is reshaping what it means to be an influencer.

__________

Also worth a read:

• Make way for the investment bank influencers

British farmer Alex Birch has beef with influencers… 🐄

He says he now plans to crossbreed his “cute” Highland cows to make them less photogenic… because influencers keep hugging them.

People have been flocking to his Derbyshire farm, filming content and disturbing animals.

“My cows don’t get any peace,” the farmer said.

Officials have warned cattle are dangerous… but that viral content sure is tempting!

Derbyshire farmer taking action to stop TikTokers hugging cows

And on that udderly ridiculous note, let’s wrap up this week’s Geekout.

My BIG mistake

Giphy

Last Friday night, I asked my fiancée Sarah a very normal, very harmless question:

“Who’s your celebrity crush?”

She then told me about a international DJ, and former Celebs Go Dating star, Tom Zanetti, who she’s been obsessed with for the past 20 years…

…who appears to have had fun on his flight to Ibiza last night: 😂
-

Instagram post

-
So, naturally, because I am basically an idiot with WiFi most of the time, I messaged him on Instagram.

Just a casual DM. Nothing dramatic. Just me informing a global DJ that my fiancée has been fan-girling over him for two decades.

What could possibly go wrong?

To my surprise, he replied.

Then he sent Sarah a video message.

At this point, Sarah’s brain basically left her body.

But then, after a few follow-up DMs, this happened:
-

-
He asked if I could help him with his socials.

Fast forward a couple of days and he’d sent me his mobile number, set up a video call, and started planning a meeting with his team.

Sarah’s jaw hit the floor.

Then I told her he’d agreed (maybe only in jest) to DJ at our wedding in return for me helping him with a few things on his socials:
-

-

Giphy

-
So what’s the big mistake?

Most people have a celebrity crush. Their partners usually feel safe knowing they are highly unlikely to ever meet them in real life.

I, however, have somehow given Sarah the mobile number of her celebrity crush, invited him to DJ at our wedding, and created the very real possibility that I’ll spend my own reception watching my fiancée swoon over another man while I stand there muttering…

“…well, at least this will make great content?” 😏 🤣

Giphy

I may come to regret ever sending that DM!

P.S. Tom is about to open a new restaurant in Marbella that looks sick. Worth checking out.

P.S. This newsletter is edited by Martin SFP Bryant

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Hello, geeks!

What’s this? Instagram has launched a new app?!

Say hello to Instants. Meta’s latest attempt at making “authentic sharing” happen (again).

Because apparently what the world really needed… was another Snapchat/BeReal clone.
-

-
Instants is a standalone app on iOS + Android (currently testing in Spain and Italy)

The app lets you can send unedited, one-tap photos to friends… that disappear after one view or within 24 hours.

No filters. No camera roll uploads. No second chances.

In other words: less “curated grid”, more “accidental double chin at 11:47pm”.
-

-
Meta’s pitch is “Real life, real quick.”

The reality is another swing at recapturing private, low-pressure sharing… as public feeds get increasingly polished, performative, and filled with AI slop.

And if this all feels a bit… familiar, you’re not alone.

The early reactions to Instants on my Threads post are mostly all:

• “Didn’t we already have this?”

• “Why is this a separate app?”

• “So… Snapchat. Again.”

What do you think…? Do you see yourself actually using Instants?

Or is this just another app you download, try once… and forget exists by next week?

__________

A BIG thanks to WhatsApp 👊

-
A couple of weeks ago, WhatsApp announced a global partnership with Arsenal F.C.

As a lifelong Gunners fan, I dropped a cheeky line in Geekout when i mentioned the news a couple of weeks ago:
-

-
I didn’t expect anyone at Meta to actually spot it!

Then this landed in my inbox last week. WTF 😮 👇 [pinch to zoom in]
-

-
Not only that—WhatsApp invited me for a private tour of the Emirates Stadium.

Genuinely blew my mind.

And with the title race going down to the wire—Arsenal level on points with Man City at the top of the table…

…This Fulham match is going to be massive.

Safe to say… I’m very excited to be going. Huge thanks to WhatsApp 🙌

__________

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Instagram tests a new 'Instants' app for sharing disappearing photos

The app lets users share disappearing photos with their friends that can be viewed only once and remain available for 24 hours.

2. Meta to cut 10% of its workforce as AI spending grows to $135B [COST-CUTTING]

3. X makes it 1,900% more expensive to post links via the API [EXTORTING]

4. Meta now tracks workers' mouse movements, keystrokes to train AI [HARVESTING]

5. WhatsApp is testing a Snapchat+ style Premium paid plan [MONETISING]

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673K posts. 63K accounts — What’s actually working on LinkedIn right now 👀

-
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Here’s a SNEAK PEEK of the Study’s Insights: 👀

• 📈 LinkedIn engagement is up 14% — Driven by clicks and “invisible interactions,” not just likes

• 💬 Personal profiles lead conversations — 63% higher engagement and 238% more comments than company pages

• ❓Asking questions boosts commenting… a lot! — Posts that include a question get 77% more comments

• 📣 Carousels are underused but overperforming — Carousels get 17x more interactions vs. images, yet images are still posted 6x more than carousels

• ⏱️ Content on LinkedIn has a short lifespan — 50% of Impressions happen in the first 48 hours

The big takeaway? The metrics most marketers track aren’t the ones driving results.

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You’d have to really LOVE WhatsApp to buy the Premium version

WhatsApp is testing a premium subscription, but it is mainly cosmetic

Hot on the heels of the paid subscription for Instagram we saw a few weeks ago, Meta is back at it - this time testing a premium version of WhatsApp.

As with Instagram, this subscription is very much a consumer-focused offering. You’d have to be really enthusiastic about WhatsApp to want to pay for features like pinned chats, custom lists, and new chat themes, even if the pricing spotted so far falls around the pocket-money €2.49 mark.

The move to try direct consumer monetisation of its most popular apps comes at a difficult time for Meta.

After Reuters reported this week the company was planning to lay off 10% of the workforce (around 8,000 people!), it was forced to admit to employees that yes, it was true… but the layoffs won’t be happening just yet.

In the meantime, employees get a few weeks of looming dread that they might lose their jobs, coupled with their computer activity being recorded to train AI… which might well eventually replace some of the people who aren’t laid off.

The layoffs come, Meta has suggested, because of the amount of money the company is spending on AI. It needs to save cash elsewhere, and hey, people are expensive!

AI is transforming software development, speeding up work massively and requiring smaller teams. Meta is no exception to this. But there are risks.

Meta is a company that has always traded on bringing humans closer together. It’s also a company that has been ruthlessly guided by data and a thirst for profit. For the most part it has made the right trade-offs and corrected course when it needs to, letting it balance these two sides of its identity.

But if Meta increasingly leans on AI, that balance could be harder to keep, with employees less connected to the product they’re responsible for, and the users they rely on.

In this rapidly changing landscape, where shareholders, and the competition, demand ever increasing AI usage in building apps, Mark Zuckerberg will have to hope he can keep Meta a human enough company that users still love its apps enough to spend €2.99 a month on a few bells and whistles for WhatsApp.

Image: Meta

• Meta is introducing a new centralised Meta Account to simplify access across Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp, replacing Accounts Centre

• Meta is going to let parents view the topics their teens are discussing with its AI assistant

• Meta Quest now has a DIRECTV app, bringing live TV to VR for the first time

• Meta faces a new lawsuit accusing it of allowing scam ads on Facebook and Instagram

• A Meta contractor in Kenya has laid off 1,000+ workers after it lost its contract following the recent scandal over staff watching smart glasses videos

• Messenger is testing a ‘Moments’ feature on Android

__________

Image: Instagram

• Instagram Edits has introduced improved captions, enhanced effects customisation, and smarter memory tools

• Instagram has updated profile banners with a new design that makes them more visible, along with an option to add a new one directly from the profile

• Instagram has again hinted at future paid premium Edits tiers as rising AI costs push monetisation strategy (as first raised during my interview recently)

• Instagram has added a new way to start a Blend or share a post directly from suggested posts within a shared message

• Future Instagram Edits features in development include bilingual captions, advanced editing tools, personalised quick setups, pinned tools, and more complex templates 

• Instagram’s API now supports Paid Partnership labels and additional metrics to show up in third-party apps, like reposts, saves, and shares

• Instagram is testing an Auto Translate feature for Broadcast Channels

• Instagram could add a built-in voice-over feature for stories, Adam Mosseri says

__________

Image: Meta

• Threads is ramping up efforts to kill of Elon Musk’s X by introducing ‘live chats,’ a new feature for real-time, event-focused conversations

• Threads now lets you create a shareable views count card…

  … And Threads now lets you show off your total post views from the past 30 days—right on your profile

• Threads now lets you more easily quote-post one of your old posts to add more thoughts on the same topic

• WhatsApp has added prepaid phone recharges in India as its payments usage still lags

• WhatsApp is working on making it easier for users to stop receiving messages from businesses

• WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that lets users quickly create and copy stickers from images

• WhatsApp is working on notification bubbles to improve how conversations appear on Android

__________

Credit: @nikitabier on X

• Elon Musk ignored a summons for questioning by French authorities over alleged child abuse images, holocaust denial, and more on X

  ….and the US DoJ has refused to help France, calling the probe “politically charged”

• X rolled out a ‘Snooze Topics’, option letting you mute unwanted content in your For You feed

  …you can also Snooze videos

• X pushed back the launch of the X Chat app again, this time to 27 April. Believe it when we see it?

__________

Credit: TikTok

• US lawmakers have written an open letter to TikTok US CEO Adam Presser urging the platform to enforce stricter age verification measures

• TikTok now lets you post content exclusively to your Friends circle

• TikTok’s child skincare boom is facing regulatory scrutiny, but it’s in a legal grey area

• TikTok UK and Visa have launched a ‘Creator Card’ for influencers to have quicker access to earnings from TikTok LIVE gifts, brand partnerships, and payouts.

• YouTube expanded its parental control tools as screen time concerns surge, including time limits for Shorts

• YouTube is now muting push notifications from channels you haven’t watched in a month 🙌

• YouTube added Voice Boost for clearer dialogue in videos you watch, and ‘experience points’ to help channels identify active community members

• YouTube confirmed that election ads are exempt from placement rules, but they still must follow full Google Ads policies and pass verification

• YouTube signed SiriusXM as exclusive US audio ad partner, launching fall 2026.

• YouTube TV’s fully customisable multiview has finally started rolling out

__________

Image: Snap

• SnapChat’s Snap Map has a new Place Loyalty feature, a bit like old-school Foursquare mayorships

• Mastodon says its flagship server was hit by a DDoS attack. This follows a similar attack on Bluesky last week

• Telegram is being investigated in the UK over child abuse content concerns

• Telegram will now keep inactive accounts alive for two years instead of one

• Telegram now lets you customise the app’s share sheet

• Bluesky upgraded its image quality with increased file size limits and sharper resolution.

• Beehiiv, which powers this newsletter, has rolled out new creator tools, including webinars and customisable paywalls

X has introduced Grok AI-powered Custom Timelines

Users can follow and pin feeds across 75 different topics.

Grok AI powers the personalized feeds based on user interests and engagement.

The feature replaces Communities, which will be discontinued on May 6 due to low usage.

Custom Timelines will roll out first to X Premium subscribers on iOS, with Android coming soon.

X introduces topic-based Custom Timelines

__________

Also spotted this week…

• TikTok is experimenting with an AI “Remix” tool that transforms posts into shareable memes. But creators are worried because it has to be manually turned off on a post-by-post basis

• YouTube is expanding its AI deepfake detection tool widely to creators, celebrities, and Hollywood stars

• WhatsApp is working on the ability generate private summaries of your unread chats

• Instagram has added its AI-powered search shortcut to the end of captions

• Meta expanded its AI business assistant globally

• Facebook is using AI to improve search results in Groups

• LinkedIn's new Crosscheck feature lets premium subscribers test competing AI models for free

• xAI introduced new APIs, pricing updates, and tools to expand use cases and revenue

• xAI’s Grok now has a Threads account

I spoke to The Times about UK Green Party leader Zack Polanski met with NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s social team to replicate his viral TikTok campaign success.

Zack Polanski takes a leaf out of Zohran Mamdani’s book

The Green Party leader meets the team behind the New York mayor’s social media campaign in the hope of replicating his success

I explained how winning attention now requires TikTok-first storytelling, not traditional political messaging…
-

Tim Cook announced this week he will be standing down as Apple CEO later in the year, to be replaced by John Ternus.

Cue the memes…

Twitter tweet

__________

__________

Remember when Trump called Tim Cook “Tim Apple”?

Twitter tweet

Want more Tim Cook memes…? Head to Business Insider.

Over on Threads, everyone was talking about paper planes.

I first noticed after the platform’s official account published this.
-

-
This was in response to other users sharing this little tidbit and it taking off like crazy (or like a paper plane).
-

-
I have no idea whether this was a real thing or not, but a long press has only ever opened the share sheet for me. Either way, it turned into a meme for no apparent reason, helped by Threads’ own algorithm.

Users’ feeds were filled with paper planes chat for about a day.

Sometimes the dumbest things go viral and no-one can really figure out why 🤷‍♂️

__________

Tinder Swindlers

A viral video this week claimed to reveal how scammers bypass Tinder’s Face Check using one real image. 😬

Tinder says it is tightening checks with stricter photo consistency and review systems.

Tinder responds to viral video about tricking facial scan

Trust and safety continues to be a major concern on dating apps.

RIP unhinged brands?

What goes up must come down…

Duolingo is scaling back its “unhinged” TikTok marketing after reach has declined.

The brand is now shifting toward a more balanced, less shock-driven tone.

Duolingo dials back its 'unhinged' marketing

__________

More brand news and views:

• Warner Bros. says creator content beats traditional ads 3:1 in performance

• Marketers say brands can’t control culture—communities and creators do.

__________

Also quoted this week:

“I know this is unwelcome news and confirming this puts everyone in an uneasy state, but we feel this is the best path forward, given the circumstances. We’re doing this as part of our continued effort to run the company more efficiently and to allow us to offset the other investments we’re making.”

- Meta’s Chief People Officer, Janelle Gale explains to employees why thousands of them are about to be laid off. Employment in Silicon Valley is a precarious thing these days as big tech chases AI supremacy.

__________

“It is absolutely galling for social media giants to say their platforms are not addictive. Parents, experts, whistleblowers, even users, are all aware of the dangers posed by social media. The platforms are the only ones still in denial, spouting claims which have zero credibility.”

- Liberal Democrat MP Caroline Voaden reacts after Meta, Roblox, and TikTok told her their platforms are not addictive.

Bond is a new social media platform that wants to use AI to help you kick your doomscrolling habit.

Users upload “memories,” which train AI to suggest real-world activities and experiences. The app removes feeds and ads, focusing on private archives and discovery.

Future plans include users licensing their data for AI training or commerce integrations.

TechCrunch takes a closer look…

__________

Also this week:

• SaySo is a new short-form video app that aims to restore users’ trust in news

Frequent social media use has been linked to weaker reading and vocabulary in teens in a new study.

Regular social media use could affect child development

Hundreds of AI-generated pro-Trump influencers are flooding TikTok, Instagram, Facebook before the US midterm elections.

__________

More WTF this week:

• X has been accused of throttling TBPN clips after the tech podcast was acquired by xAI rival OpenAI

• A hacker avoided jail after accessing US government data and posting it on Instagram 

• AI safety groups are recruiting influencers to warn AI could threaten humanity

Did Instagram make you think there was something wrong with your eyes this week?

A bug turned some users’ HDR photos black and white after they were uploaded, but it’s been fixed now and full colour is restored.

Instagram says a bug turned your photos black and white

__________

More fails spotted:

• YouTube is losing track of where to start videos after you're done watching ads, thanks to a bug with preroll ads

• X rushed out a fix after its Android app failed to open links and notifications

Zoom is hiring a Social Media Manager [Remote, Worldwide]

__________

More social media jobs:

• Greenpeace needs a Social Media Specialist [Hybrid, London, UK]

• E.ON is recruiting a Social Media Specialist [Nottingham/Solihull, UK]

• Bitly is looking for a Social Media and Community Manager [Remote, USA]

X is killing off its Communities feature. Apparently they were barely used… except by spammers.

X is shutting down Communities because of low usage and lots of spam

__________

Also this week:

• WhatsApp will no longer let users create new avatars, but your existing avatar stickers will still be available to use.

__________

More social stats:

• BIG AI BUCKS: Meta has disclosed it paid Broadcom $2.3 billion in 2025 to design custom AI chips

• SO MANY EDITS: Instagram Edits shipped 130+ new features in its first year 🤯

• SPAM CENTRAL: X’s Head of Product Nikita Bier says the soon-to-be-dead Communities feature drove under 0.4% of usage but 80% of spam reports on the platform

YouTube crushes rivals as US kids’ top creator platform across every demographic.
-

Former MrBeast exec sues over ‘years’ of alleged harassment

The former employee was fired shortly after maternity leave.

__________

Also spotted this week…

• Meta, TikTok, and Roblox executives told UK MPs their platforms are not “addictive by nature.” [The Guardian]

• Mobile phones will be banned in schools in England under new plans. [The Guardian]

• Turkey has passed a law to restrict social media access for under-15s. [AP]

• Norway plans to ban social media use by children under 16. [Reuters $$$]

• TikTok US has gained security infrastructure certification confirming its systems meet global information security standards. [Social Media Today]

• TikTok has selected Sienna Spiro as the first British artist in its “Behind the Breakthrough” campaign. [TikTok Newsroom]

• TikTok partnered with Noah Kahan for an intimate NYC fan event tied to his album The Great Divide. [TikTok Newsroom]

New features and tests:

• Instagram is testing a new splash screen for Reels shared with other users via a link. [@oncescruadu]

• Instagram is widely rolling out the ability to earn money through affiliate programmes with products tagged in Reels. [@oncescuradu]

• TikTok has been spotted sporting an updated share sheet. [@theahmedghanem]

• Google has expanded its Demand Gen tools to drive faster YouTube ad conversions. [Search Engine Land]

Is that popular clip really viral, or has been artificially shoved in your face until you like it?

'Clipping' is taking over social feeds — and that's changing our perception of what's actually popular

It's getting harder to tell what's organically popular and what's being fed to us by "clippers" on our social feeds. The band Geese, for instance.

__________

Also worth a read:

• Bluesky set out to fix social media. Now it’s running into familiar problems

• War memes are turning conflict into content

• Why more creators are holding IRL events to own their audience

• TikTok’s biggest star watched his $975 million AI deal fizzle out. What happened?

It’s no surprise that there’s a subreddit for bald people. After all, there’s a subreddit for everything.

But if you feel the world’s a bit bleak these days, this is a great read to restore your faith in humanity…

…And in bald people being nice to each other in a world that has never really made hairlessness cool. 🥚

Going bald? There’s a subreddit for that – and it’s weirdly wonderful

Being hairless on top has never been in style, but r/bald members encourage one another in the face of insecurity

And on that warm fuzzy ending… It’s time to cut you loose.

You have completed this week’s Geekout.

I’m heading off to prepare for my teen daughter’s house party to celebrate her 16th birthday.

She says she’s only invited “around 30” to the house party at my place.

In teen maths that means… 60. Minimum.

I’m locking down the house in preparation for the carnage it will likely escalate into.
-

-
Clouds of vape smoke.

Drunk teens vomiting on my patio.

Neighbours threatening to call the police if we don’t shut it down.

Pray for me… Goodbye, geeks!

P.S. This newsletter is edited by Martin SFP Bryant

Advertise in Geekout
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Hello, geeks!

I never thought I would be writing this.

This week’s Geekout features a lot of Justin Bieber. I’m so sorry. 🤷‍♂️

The shaven-headed pop monkey generated a lot of headlines following his $10M Coachella ‘performance’.

Some critics slammed his ‘YouTube Karaoke’ set as ‘lazy’, low-energy, and uninspired…

…But many others leapt to his defence describing it as genius and that those people mocking his nostalgic, meme-filled YouTube screen share were missing the point entirely.

Keep scrolling for my take on the story splitting online opinion this week.

__________

Happy 1st Birthday Instagram Edits 🎂
-

-
Instagram’s Edits app is turning one!

To celebrate, it’s hosting a virtual event that doubles as a birthday celebration — and I got a party invite 🥳

Creators @rvxmendoza and @funyaasi will join Edits Product Lead, Matthew Simari, for live editing demos and a walkthrough of how videos go from idea to final post inside the app.

The product team will be tease what’s next for Edits in 2026.

Members of the Geekout VIP community on WhatsApp want to gatecrash the party!

-
One member, Aditya Choudhary, set up a petition to pressure Instagram into sending out more invites (just for fun!)

I sent it to my contacts at Instagram HQ. And to my surprise, they have buckled and promised more invites: 🤣👇
-

-
Join Geekout VIP Group Chat on WhatsApp for FREE + get an IG Edits party invite. Use discount code: GEEKFREE

__________

2 cool things… 👀

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🔥 The AI workshop every social media team needs to attend… Trust me, it’s good! — 1,700+ people requested an invite*

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So you tweak the prompt. Try again. Still generic.

Because AI isn’t the problem. Your prompts are.

Most prompts are written by AI, for AI. These aren’t.

Brand24 collected 20+ AI prompts from 21 top marketers like Andy Crestodina, Neal Schaffer, and Sara Stella Lattanzio.

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Meta builds AI version of Mark Zuckerberg to interact with staff

CEO is training and testing his own character as part of wider push to develop ‘personal superintelligence’

2. Elon Musk’s Grok AI chatbot is still making sexual deepfakes, despite X’s promise to stop it [PERSISTING]

3. Europe moves toward a coordinated EU-wide teen social media ban [ESCALATING]

4. British MPs vote against a social media ban for under-16s a second time [BLOCKING]

5. EU threatens to force Meta to restore WhatsApp access for rival AI chatbots [REGULATING]

SPONSORED ▶︎ FREE AI WORKSHOP

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AI isn’t replacing you. But it is exposing you. 😬

Be honest! Have you ever...

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• Avoided AI completely because it all feels a bit 🤖 + soulless?

An ALARMING number of us have! And that’s a problem.

Right now, most social teams are either…

• Pumping out beige, forgettable AI content…or

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Neither wins.... So let’s cut through the noise.

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• 💬 Why human-led content still outperforms AI

• ✍ How to write AI prompts that save hours + unlock better insights

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Then we're switching gears for an interactive workshop:

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THAT Justin Bieber show

Justin Bieber Coachella review: Why critics missed the point

Viral moments are a big part of the modern big music show experience, whether whether they’re intentional guest appearances made to be excitedly shared, or an accidental global news story (the Coldplay kisscam 😳).

Justin Bieber’s show at Coachella last weekend was made to go viral, but the way the singer achieved that has split fans and critics alike.

In case you missed it, there was a big chunk of the show where he brought out a laptop, pulled up YouTube, and shared funny clips and hits from his years as a young heartthrob.

The crowd was treated to clips of him falling off stage and walking into a door, and he sang along with music videos from the start of his career.

This carousel gives you a good idea…

Instagram post

It was NOT the Eras tour or a Beyoncé show. This was more like being invited round to Bieber’s house for a few drinks and a chat.

Given reports he was being paid $10 million for two shows across Coachella’s two weekends, fans might have expected more.

But I reckon what Bieber did was art.

Yes, it was designed to go viral. As Dexerto put it, “the moment that spread fastest online came when Bieber pulled up the classic Deez Nuts Vine, the Double Rainbow video, and his own 2025 paparazzi clip, where he said, “It’s not clocking to you that I’m standing on business,” before reenacting the line live on stage.”

But it was also stripped back, personal, and seemed to be authentically him. That’s an artist doing what he wants to do. He’s been a star for as long as some young adults have been alive - he’s earned it, even if his music isn’t to everyone’s taste.

He didn’t need expensive choreography and light shows to earn his millions and get the world talking about him. Good on ya, Justin.

Meta’s ‘Conversations’ event takes place June 3 in London | Credit: Meta

• Meta is hosting an AI-focused ‘Conversations’ messaging event in London on 3 June. (Meta has invited me to attend in person. Look out for BTS insights in Geekout in June)

• Meta is hiking Quest headset prices as RAM shortages slam hardware costs globally

• Meta’s new Muse Spark AI is encouraging users to share health data like lab results. Experts warn this data isn’t protected and could be stored or used for training or ads

• Meta has been warned by over 70 advocacy groups that facial recognition glasses will arm sexual predators

• Meta must face a lawsuit in Massachusetts alleging it designed addictive features targeting teens

• Aaron Sorkin has revealed first footage of The Social Reckoning, sequel to The Social Network with Jeremy Strong as Mark Zuckerberg… but we can’t see it yet. It’s out in October

• Meta is preventing its Oversight Board from working with external AI firms despite interest

• Facebook Pages have a new calendar view in the content dashboard, displaying both published and scheduled posts. It also adds a new “Voice Translations” section showing content with voice translation enabled

• Facebook has been spotted allowing you to see other stories by swiping down on a story you are viewing

__________

Instagram’s ‘Your Algorithm’ feature extended to Explore tab | Credit: Meta

• Instagram has extended the ‘Your algorithm’ feature to the Explore tab

• Instagram is testing letting you add images in comments (wild this is only happening now!)

• Instagram has started limiting the number of trial Reels users can post for up to 30 days

• Instagram is working on the ability to cross-post Story highlights to Facebook

• Instagram is removing the QR code and copy link options for profiles

• Instagram is expanding access to GIF Notes

• Instagram is now available as a native app on Android-powered tablets

• Instagram Edits has added a new ‘Templates’ filter in the Ideas tab

• Instagram Edits now has a reach-first dashboard marketers will love. It ranks your post metrics by what actually boosts reach

• Instagram Edits has added new font tools, colour control and the ability recover deleted projects for seven days

__________

Threads indented replies coming soon | Credit: Meta

• Threads is switching to indented replies to make it easier to follow conversations

• Threads is finally bringing DMs to the desktop web version

• Threads is set to launch a ‘live chat’ feature (oooo!)

• Threads’ API now has expanded third-party integrations with content management tools like Hootsuite and Sprout Social

• Threads is now using a larger font for posts that contain just a single emoji

• Threads now has a Fullscreen button for horizontal videos

• Threads added a fun, new Like animation for posts about the Coachella music festival.

__________

WhatsApp testing new controls for disappearing messages | Credit: WABetaInfo

• WhatsApp is developing an “after reading” timer so disappearing messages can be set to vanish at a specific time after being read

• European governments are forcing officials off WhatsApp and Signal onto state-built messaging apps

• WhatsApp is developing 49 chat themes to expand limited customisation on desktop

• WhatsApp is testing expanding status updates to recent unsaved contacts

• WhatsApp is developing a new feature to help Android users monitor the activity of their linked devices

__________

X’s standalone chat app X Chat launching 23 April | Credit: @oncescuradu

• X is set to launch its standalone messaging app, XChat, for iOS next week

• X is rolling out a new take on “Cashtags” that will show live stock and crypto data inside user timelines

• X is overhauling creator payouts to reward original content over reposts and aggregators to reign in clickbait accounts

• X is recommending explicit content to users posing as 13-year-olds, a study found

• X Money could threaten consumers, national security, and financial system stability, according to Senator Elizabeth Warren

• X has expanded the ‘snooze topics’ feature more widely

• X added a new ‘Shared media’ feature for private conversations

__________

TikTok’s Olivia Rodrigo ‘Drop Dead’ music hub | Credit: TikTok

• TikTok launched a global karaoke campaign for Olivia Rodrigo’s new single ‘Drop Dead,’ and an in-app listening party for fans

• TikTok just added an AI meme generator 💀

• TikTok is ramping up its original content strategy with a scripted romantic drama about a Silicon Valley love triangle

• TikTok published its first transparency report on EU hate speech removal. It says 96.3% of violating content is removed before users report it

• TikTok is testing a new ‘With Media’ comment filter for post comments

• AMC is launching ‘The Audacity’ premiere on TikTok, split into 21x 3-minute segments

__________

YouTube’s now Shorts feed ‘0-minutes’ limit option | Credit: YouTube

• YouTube now lets remove Shorts entirely from your feed with a new 0-minutes daily Shorts limit option

• YouTube is testing showing creator posts directly in the Shorts feed to boost visibility

• YouTube Premium is rising from $13.99 to $15.99 and family plans are now $26.99. YouTube Music climbs to $11.99, while Premium Lite is now $8.99

• YouTube’s mobile app finally lets you share timestamped videos

• YouTube introduced new livestream features like expanded virtual gifts and ad-free viewing for viewers who donate to a streamer

• YouTube and the NFL are in advanced talks over a five-game broadcast package

• The UK government plans to launch a central YouTube channel to counter misinformation and boost reach

• YouTube confirmed those 90-second unskippable TV ads people saw last week were just a bug. Thank god!

• The Eurovision Song Contest will stream for free in US on YouTube

• YouTube is partnering with C-SPAN to expand into education and civic content as the U.S. approaches its 250th anniversary.

__________

LinkedIn’s AI-powered conversational search feature | Credit: LinkedIn

• LinkedIn is adding AI-powered summaries to search results and expanding AI-powered ‘conversational’ search to all US users

• Reddit rolled out Reminder Ads globally, enabling brands to send push alerts before and during events

• Reddit launched a new HubSpot integration, enabling marketers to publish, schedule, and track campaigns directly

• Snap has cut 16% of staff, eliminating around 1,000 jobs and 300 open roles. The company says AI is replacing repetitive work and boosting efficiency

• Bluesky suffered serious downtime on Thursday (16 April). The company blamed a DDOS attack (ooof!)

• Discord has introduced new desktop display settings to make chats easier on the eyes

• Roblox is introducing Kids and Select accounts to improve safety for under-16 users

  …and Roblox has defended its expanded age checks after parents warned kids are being misclassified as adults

• Apple is reportedly testing four new smart glasses designs to take on Meta’s Ray-Bans

Scary times for graphic designers…

Canva is rolling out an AI assistant that can create whole designs for you based on text prompts.

Canva's AI assistant can now call various tools to make designs for you

__________

Also spotted this week…

• TikTok now lets you allow AI to remix your content

• ByteDance has launched the Seedance 2.0 AI video model globally, excluding the US

• Facebook is bringing its opt-in feature that scans users’ camera rolls for content ideas to the UK

• Meta rolled out AI-powered Pixel upgrades that automatically capture product and business data for ads

• Meta is plugging its new Muse Spark AI into Ray-Ban smart glasses to fix shaky computer vision

• Meta’s Manus AI app has added music generation

• LinkedIn expanded AI-powered conversational search from Premium only to all users globally

• LinkedIn is quietly testing an AI labour marketplace paying up to $150/hour for training chatbots

• LinkedIn is testing an ‘automatic captioning’ feature for videos that duplicates the post’s description in a light blue stripe.

• TikTok has added new AI video generation tools to its Symphony ad toolkit

• Adobe is launching Firefly AI Assistant to automate complex creative workflows using prompts across Creative Cloud apps

__________

Honestly, I’m not turning into a Belieber…! 😬

Without wanting to go TOO overboard on the Bieber stuff, his Coachella set did inspire a lot of great memes…

….With people and brands putting their own spin on his ‘YouTube karaoke’.

Twitter tweet

__________

Twitter tweet

__________

Twitter tweet

Super Mario has entered his AI slop era… and it’s selling. 🍄

TikTok Shop is filling up with low-effort AI videos using familiar characters to sell products—often wrapped in fake, emotional storytelling that converts.

Super Mario is now the face of TikTok Shop AI slop, and it's fooling millions

__________

More viral news this week:

• Indie band Geese has been dragged into a “psyop” drama over shady viral marketing claims

• Gen Z service members on #MilitaryTok are sharing anxious, sarcastic reactions to the Iran war. Their tone contrasts with the White House’s gamified “warrior culture” messaging

• Gen Z’s ‘Silent Scream’ is driving the internet (and millennials) crazy

• TikTok’s latest viral trend features users eating clay flower pots (don’t try it yourself)

Brands are reply-guying their way into relevance…

From TikTok to Instagram and X, brands are hijacking viral comment threads to chase culture and cheap engagement

But it’s a risky game, where forced tone, backlash, and brand dilution can hit fast.

Why brands can't stop acting like reply guys and jumping into viral comment threads on social media

__________

More brand news and views:

• How The Daily Show is outsmarting the social media algorithm

• Walmart is scaling creator-led commerce as social becomes a key shopping discovery channel for consumers

• How Dr Pepper doubled down on fandom, making social media the core of its marketing strategy.

__________

Also quoted this week:

“Completely insane… untenable"

- Snap CEO Evan Spiegel describes his work schedule

__________

“Stock up on several VPNs”

- Telegram CEO Pavel Durov advises Russian users on how to keep access to the app as the Kremlin cracks down

__________

“It’s not very often that the MPA takes on a 1.6 trillion-dollar company"

- Motion Picture Association CEO Charlie Rivkin on clashing with Meta over Instagram’s use of the ‘PG13’ age rating

__________

“The addictive scrolling mechanisms are really problematic…. They need to go"

“Things can’t go on like this, they must change because right now social media is putting our children at risk.”

“In a world in which children are protected, even if that means access is restricted, that is preferable to a world where harm is the price of participation.”

- UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer isn’t a fan of infinite-scroll feeds and is demanding action from social media companies to protect teen users

Iran is dominating the social media propaganda battle against the US with viral memes, AI videos, and satire.

Gen Z creators are pushing content targeting US audiences during the ongoing conflict, to challenge the US government viewpoint.

Given the war is unpopular with the public around much of the world, it’s arguably quite an easy game to play, but they’re good at it.

Viral victory: Iran is beating the land of tech bros in the social media wars

__________

But also:

• The first AI-era war is a "slopaganda" battle to control memes

X’s aggressive bot purge is wiping real users, including private “alt” p**n accounts. 😳

An AI-powered crackdown is sweeping up legit users alongside bots—exposing how blunt enforcement breaks trust, mislabels behaviour, and risks pushing core communities off-platform.

X’s Big Bot Purge Wiped Out a Lot of People’s Secret P**n Feeds

Pinterest has dropped a bold campaign urging users to ditch social media.

The campaign’s tagline: “The best thing you can find online is a reason to go offline.”

The company is doubling down on positioning Pinterest as a discovery tool, not an addictive social platform.

The campaign subtly attacks rival social platforms while branding Pinterest as the “healthier” alternative.

AI-generated influencers have been posing as real attendees at Coachella.

Many avatars, like ‘Grannyspills’, fake interactions with celebrities, often without clear AI disclosure.

The trend highlights growing concerns about authenticity, as fake influencers chase clout and brand deals.

AI influencers are ‘everywhere’ at Coachella

__________

More WTF this week:

• An American YouTuber was jailed for vile ‘rage bait’ stunts like kissing a “Statue of Peace,” honouring WWII sexual slavery victims

• Google, Microsoft, and Meta are all tracking you even when you opt out

• Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses triggered controversy at the Masters as fans used them to bypass strict recording bans

• Telegram is still hosting a sanctioned $21 billion crypto scammer black market

• You’d think he’d stick to X, but… Elon Musk might have joined TikTok and Instagram

• The Meta AI app is telling your friends on Instagram if you use it. Careful - you might look uncool

• Dr TikTok: patients are diagnosing chronic illnesses with anonymous commenters’ help

It’s well understood now that social media amplifies extreme voices, fuelling populism and political polarisation globally.

But this piece looks at data showing AI chatbots instead push users toward moderate, expert-aligned viewpoints, nudging both left and right users toward the center.

Conspiracy beliefs thrive on social platforms but are rarely endorsed by AI… at least for now!

Social media is populist and polarising; AI may be the opposite

__________

Also this week:

• A new study shows 35% of new websites since 2022 are AI-generated or AI-assisted. Researchers say AI content is 107% more positive, driving an overly cheerful, “fake-happy” internet tone

USA Today is looking for a Social Media and Engagement Content Strategy Analyst [Remote, USA]

__________

More top social media jobs:

• The UK Cabinet Office needs a Videographer & Social Media Content Creator [London, UK]

• Mozilla is hiring a Social Media & Content Strategist (Open-Source AI) [Remote, global]

• GoCardless is recruiting a Social Media Manager [Leeds, UK]

__________

More social stats 📊

• NOT LAME: TikTok’s top creators in 2026 are led by Khaby Lame with 160.7 million followers

• TWITCHY: Twitch’s biggest streamers now pull huge audiences, with Kai Cenat leading at 20.21 million followers

• FAST FLAG: TikTok says 88.7% of flagged content in the EU is reviewed within 24 hours, with a median response time of 3.05 hours

• NOT WORKING: New research shows over 60% of Australian teens still access social media despite the ban

• BREAKING!: “Breaking news” posts on X deliver 4x engagement for news publishers compared to those without that text

• SNEAKY: In a study of ChatGPT, Reddit content was frequently retrieved but cited just 1.93% of the time

• DOMINATION: Social media platforms dominate digital advertising, with Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok capturing over 90% of social ad revenue. Meta dominates with a staggering 70% share of that market

• MOSTLY HARMLESS?: Most US teens say TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat aren't hurting (or helping) their mental health

• NEWSTOK: 45% of TikTok users use the app to get news, vs 26% for Snapchat

Social traffic kinda stinks for news publishers now, in three charts.

New data show Twitter / X referrals have plunged 70% globally since Elon Musk’s 2022 acquisition.

Facebook referral traffic has also seen steep declines.

And even when users click through, engagement time on news sites is falling.

Here’s the most stark chart… 😳

__________

More charts 📈

• AD IT UP: How Meta fares against big tech rivals on predicted ad revenues for 2026

• GET THE MESSAGE: Snapchat dominates messaging among US teens

• GIVE ME A REASON: US teens use TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat for entertainment and connection, but TikTok stands out for product reviews

Things can't go on like this, Starmer tells social media bosses

It comes as the government continues to consult on whether to ban under-16s from social media in the UK.

Also making headlines this week… 📰

• How the UK government plans to regulate social media for under-16s. [The Guardian]

• Meta is reorganising Reality Labs to “adapt and execute faster.” [The Information $$$]

• Meta signed a deal with Broadcom to deploy over 1 gigawatt of custom AI chips, scaling to multiple gigawatts by 2027. [CNBC]

• Meta increased action against some posts using the word “antifa”. [The Intercept]

• Snap is partnering with Qualcomm to power its new AI Spectacles launching this year. [The Verge]

• Snap is pitching 'conversational commerce' as a TikTok alternative. [AdWeek $$$]

• The UK government is proposing making tech execs criminally liable for failing to remove non-consensual intimate images from their platforms. [Politico]

• The EU is preparing to roll out its own age-verification system within weeks. [Politico]

• Europe should regulate Big Tech instead of banning kids from social media, Estonia says. [Politico]

• The Philippine government has ordered Meta to curb “false and panic-inducing” content on Facebook or risk legal action. [Bloomberg $$$]

• Adam Mosseri says that too many Instagram content creators are not focusing “on the actual raw content, the message, the raw creative”, and instead prioritising production value. [@oncescuradu]

• BeReal is ramping up creator outreach to revive growth after a 41% download drop in 2025. [Business Insider $$$]

• Remember RedNote? It’s chasing US expansion after its “TikTok refugee” moment faded. [Rest of World]

• Retirees are increasingly spending large portions of their free time on social media due to a lack of daily structure. [Digital Trends]

• Twitch’s CEO says the platform’s advantage is prioritising “community” and shared live experiences. [Semafor]

• Gary Neville’s Overlap media company has acquired Mark Goldbridge’s YouTube empire in a seven-figure deal. [The Guardian]

New platform features and tests:

• Facebook has been spotted testing a new UI for the app’s main menu on iOS. [@oncescuradu]

• Messenger now has a shortcut to Facebook Dating. [@oncescuradu]

• Threads added a new UI for the comment section available for horizontal videos. [@oncescuradu]

• WhatsApp is testing a new design for the toggle buttons. [@oncescuradu]

• TikTok is now showing ‘New following’ activity in a separate tab in the inbox. [@oncescuradu]

• X now displays posts with 2+ images and clips in a Carousel layout on iOS. [@oncescuradu]

• X now has a new design for profiles’ Video section on iOS. [@oncescuradu]

• X updated the design of its Premium settings page on web, and added a new header showing when your account was verified. [@theahmedghanem]

• Snapchat started showing when your Buddy Pass free invites will be refilled. [@theahmedghanem]

• Reddit’s iOS app is adding Liquid Glass soon. [9to5Mac]

• Netflix is going full TikTok with a new vertical video feed. [Android Authority]

Influencers aren’t scaling themselves. They’re replacing themselves. 🤖

AI-generated “digital twins” of content creators and celebrities are popping up all over the place, and managing this revolution is a major priority for talent agencies like CAA.

But will audiences truly respond to a digital facsimile of the star they think they know and love?

Mega Influencers Are Replacing Themselves With AI Clones

__________

Also worth a read: 👀

• How Bluesky earned its reputation — and why it could be the way of the future

• “Screens aren’t destroying young minds. I should know

• Hollywood is casting influencers to win back Gen Z audiences abandoning traditional media

• How influencers fiercely strategize behind the scenes a Coachella

• YouTube, TikTok, and Meta are betting creator talent is portable 

• Why Instagram’s shoppable Reels may be too little, too late

Your next smartphone could literally tell you how to pose for social media 😱

Huawei’s Pura 90 offers AI-powered Posture Recommendations to help users look better in photos.

The feature analyzes scenes and suggests poses via on-screen outlines and pose instructions.

The aim is to boost your social media appeal by helping you become more photogenic, but I think I’ll stick to an awkward smile.

Whatever happened to authenticity, eh?

Your next smartphone could literally tell you how to pose for social media

You have reached the end of this week’s Geekout.

Chalk that up as an achievement, given how long it is!

_________

I’m looking forward to watching the final episode of Channel 4s ‘Battle of the Brands’ - Cadbury’s vs. McVities.

My nerdy face may pop-up one last time.

In last week’s episode, Primark vs. John Lewis, Channel 4 used several clips of me talking about Primark’s TikTok influencer strategy.

You can watch it on-demand here.

—

Right… I’m heading off to accept a VERY surprising and exciting invitation that just landed in my inbox from Meta!

More details in next week’s Geekout.

Goodbye, geeks!

P.S. This newsletter is edited by Martin SFP Bryant

Advertise in Geekout
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Get up to 25% off Geekout Sponsorships in 2026

Hello, geeks!

Welcome to your download of everything new in social.

We’ll dive straight in as there’s lots to talk about!

Coming up in this week’s Geekout:

• ✨ Meta launched its latest AI model to compete with OpenAI and Google… But Meta has already admitted it’s not cutting edge
  -

• 🔥 LinkedIn is getting heat for ‘secretly’ scanning your browser extensions… But LinkedIn says the allegations are BS
  -

• 😮 Iran is winning the social media propaganda war… Some of its X posts roasting Trump are brutal!
  -

• 🚫 Instagram is making its teen safety rules even stricter… But is it too little, too late, following recent landmark trial losses?

Plus over 30 new platforms features spotted in the wild, including…

WhatsApp rolling out usernames
Instagram testing a dedicated Stories tab
X bringing back voice notes in DMs

Keep scrolling for all that, and more. 👇

__________

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Meta releases first AI model since Zuckerberg’s spending spree

Muse Spark ‘purpose-built’ for social media apps as investors question huge AI investment

2. LinkedIn hit with lawsuits over alleged illegal browser extension tracking [SPYING]

3. Instagram is introducing stricter teen safety rules [RESTRICTING]

4. FBI issues warning against using CapCut and other Chinese apps [ALARMING]

5. Meta removes ads from lawyers seeking users to sue its platforms [BLOCKING]

Has Meta got its AI mojo back?

Meta's long-awaited AI model is finally here. But can it make money?

Meta has been spending big on AI, but hasn’t had a flagship model to show for it for some time.

After Llama 4 launched to an underwhelming reaction a year ago, Mark Zuckerberg called for a rethink, and this week we got the first output of that new approach, Muse Spark.

While the model is certainly not world leading, it at least puts Meta back in the game. It also has the ability to search public content on Instagram, Threads, and Facebook, which rivals obviously can’t access so comprehensively.

Although Muse Spark is only available in the US at the moment, the launch caused the Meta AI app to climb up the App Store charts. Clearly it’s more of a draw than the AI slop that app is usually associated with.

And Zuck is serious about going further. Meta has reportedly reassigned engineers into its Applied AI team to help accelerate model performance.

While the model is only being used by Meta right now, the company plans to eventually offer paid API access to third parties.

But with OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, xAI, Mistral, not to mention Chinese AI companies, all in competition, the question might be… should Meta open its new generation of models up for other people to build upon? Is that a race even worth running in?

All of this big-money investment in AI will need to pay off for shareholders, but Meta doesn’t necessarily need to play the same game as its rivals.

I’d suggest Meta might be better keeping Muse Spark and its sequels to itself. Use its own AI to give its own products a unique edge. Shove the models into AI smart glasses, have them power AI-driven advertising products, use them to help Meta staff be more productive. Keep the spoils for yourself, Zuck!

That’s my opinion, anyway. A wonder if Muse Spark would agree?

Getty Images

• Meta’s Superintelligence Labs is quietly building a hardware team, suggesting they’re exploring AI hardware beyond smart glasses

• A former Meta engineer is under police investigation for allegedly accessing 30,000 private images

• Meta has introduced a Featured Profiles feature for Meta Verified subscribers, offering the chance to be included in a list of ‘Recommended Meta Verified Profiles’;

• Meta has launched experimental apps for its Ray-Ban smart glasses, including games and plant recognition

• Meta-linked Scale AI is reportedly using tens of thousands of gig workers to train its AI with disturbing tasks

• Meta staff have been competing for “Token Legend” status on an internal AI usage leaderboard. The leaderboard has been shut down after the data became public

• Meta has added an option in Ads Manager to block employees from seeing your ads

__________

Instagram testing ability to share Notes with all followers, not just mutuals | Credit: @hammod_oh

• Instagram now lets you share Notes with all your followers, even if they don’t follow you back

• Instagram finally lets you edit comments (for 15 minutes after posting)

• Instagram is working on a dedicated tab for Stories with new Story discovery features

• Instagram is rolling out the ability for creators to tag linked products directly in Reels posts, with no more ‘ink in bio’

• Instagram is testing new categories for the Explore tab, including a ‘For You’ section and others based on your interests, and the ability to add new interests

• Instagram could add the ability to schedule a story or to save multiple stories to drafts

• Instagram has been spotted removing the GIF story type from the Stories editor

• Instagram launched a fresh look for buttons in the main Reels editor: more space between them, labels and a “squircle” shape

__________

WhatsApp rolling out usernames feature to beta testers | Credit: WABetaInfo

• WhatsApp finally started rolling out usernames to a limited number of users, letting you to keep your phone number private when connecting with new people

• WhatsApp is bringing Status updates to the top of the Chats tab, in an Instagram-like carousel

• WhatsApp has tweaked its logo slightly

• WhatsApp officially launched its new CarPlay app, letting you message, call, and view favourites on your dashboard

• WhatsApp is testing a noise cancellation feature for voice and video calls

• WhatsApp is working on a feature that allows users to see how many followers are subscribed to a channel

• WhatsApp is testing the ability to add new members to group chats from via the mention picker

• Threads has expanded access to mobile post scheduling

• Threads has tweaked the posts editor so can easily discard a post and jump right into a fresh draft without having to close and reopen it

• Threads on desktop has had a design refresh, making the fediverse more visible

__________

X is reintroducing Voice Notes in X Chat app | Credit: X

• X is reintroducing voice notes in its standalone X Chat app after removing the feature years ago

• Elon Musk is pressuring potential investors in the SpaceX IPO to use Grok and advertise on X

• X’s algorithm appears to penalise posts containing links, hurting publisher reach

• X has eliminated thousands of accounts in a new bot purge

• X launched new reply settings let Premium users to give ‘friends-of-friends’ the ability to comment on posts

• X has given X Money a new icon ahead of launch

__________

TikTok lets you customise DM chat bubble styles | Credit: @jonahmanzano

• TikTok now lets you customise your chat bubble style in DMs

• TikTok’s comment icon now says “Add 1st” when there are no comments on a video

• TikTok deepened its HubSpot integration, adding ad management and CRM tools

• TikTok launched an upgraded Wix integration to streamline ads and data syncing

• TikTok has partnered with Issa Rae’s HOORAE to launch exclusive micro-series content

• TikTok and the International Chamber of Commerce have launched ‘Digital Commerce Labs’ to accelerate small business growth

• TikTok is making the ‘Add to Apple Music’ and ‘Add to Spotify’ buttons more prominent within posts

__________

YouTube users report seeing 90-second unskippable ads | Credit: Dexerto

• YouTube denies its running 90-second unskippable ads despite widespread user reports showing them 🤔

• YouTube creators have filed a lawsuit accusing Amazon of scraping millions of videos for AI training

• YouTube is testing “Auto Speed” to automatically speed up videos without losing clarity, and a new “On-the-go” mode offers distraction-free controls for audio-style content

• YouTube plans to add interactive live chats, gifting, and Shorts viewing in its TV app

• YouTube upgraded exportable Creator Media Kits with income and “parent status” data

• YouTube has a new ‘Link History’ feature

• YouTube has launched ‘Channeling,’ a new interview series featuring the platform’s top creators

__________

Snapchat’s customisable QR ‘Snapcodes’ | Credit: Snap

• Snapchat has renewed its push for Snapcodes as a key marketing tool for advertisers

• LinkedIn added video speed controls, letting you play clips at 0.5x or 2x

• LinkedIn reportedly explored acquiring newsletter platform Beehiiv late last year

• Twitch has opened up sponsored campaigns to Affiliates, expanding access beyond Partner-level streamers

YouTube’s AI now lets you make avatars that look and sound like you for Shorts, Sora style.

You can record your face and voice once to generate photorealistic digital doubles.

Clips featuring your AI avatar can run up to 8 seconds long, but multiple clips can be stitched together into longer Shorts.

YouTube says the feature is rolling out globally, but is restricted to users aged 18+.

__________

Also spotted this week…

• YouTube has integrated Google’s latest Nano Banana image generation model to its Create app

• X has rolled out AI-powered post translations globally and launched new AI photo editing tools

• TikTok is tackling AI music clones with advanced audio detection tech

• Meta AI’s standalone app has a new icon

• TikTok’s Taco has a new logo too

• Canva has acquired Simtheory to add AI assistants to automate tasks and workflows for teams, and Ortto brings customer data, targeting, and multi-channel campaign automation

• Adobe has launched a free AI study tool called Student Spaces, to rival Google’s NotebookLM

Is the UK falling out of love with social media?

I spoke to The Guardian about social media’s global shift towards passive consumption.

Modern warfare isn’t just about weapons and diplomacy. Your meme game better be strong too.

But when the world’s biggest military power threatens to wipe out your civilisation, how do you respond?

Iran’s embassies around the world responded to Trump’s increasingly unhinged Truth Social posts with a mocking tone that echoed how much of the world felt.

Twitter tweet

__________

Twitter tweet

__________

Twitter tweet

__________

And that’s before you get to the Lego-inspired pro-Iran videos circulating since the war began. Wired has a really good look at them here:

The Pro-Iran Meme Machine Trolling Trump With AI Lego Cartoons

The viral AI fruit series ‘Fruit Love Island’ has sparked a new content format

Creator @perfumesguy turns fragrances into personalities using generative AI storytelling.

The account has already grown to 35K followers; with some videos hitting millions of views.

Love AI fruit slop? Welcome to AI fragrance reviews

__________

More viral news this week:

• “You the birthday” has spread on TikTok, confusing users across generations

• The “Catholicmaxxing” trend sees Gen Z rediscover religion via TikTok

• The “7×7=49” trend has taken over TikTok as users label the equation oddly “attractive”

Let’s see how long this lasts…

Big publisher HarperCollins is turning some of its best selling children’s series into AI-generated YouTube Shorts, with the help of a company called Toonstar.

Will this turn out to be high-quality content for kids, or just more pointless AI slop? We’ll find out soon enough…

HarperCollins is turning authors' books into AI YouTube Shorts

__________

More brand news and views:

• Arsenal and Meta have launched a partnership across Facebook and WhatsApp (I’m a big Gooner appreciative of free Arsenal merch, tickets… If any Meta/Arsenal staff are reading this 😁)

__________

Also quoted this week:

“We will not allow trial lawyers to profit from our platforms while simultaneously claiming they are harmful.”

- A Meta spokesperson explains why the company removed ads from lawyers advertising social media addiction litigation

__________

“They have no programming costs, they do not pre-finance works, and as a result, they have a very low fixed cost base, which allows them to offer very low advertising prices. It’s competition we cannot match, because we have to invest in programming and news.”

- Rodolphe Belmer, CEO of French TV network TF1, thinks YouTube is unfair competition

__________

“"I blame it all on my mom, because she told me, 'Don't talk with your mouth full. And I think probably in that case I should have just said, 'You know what? To hell with it. I'm gonna talk with my mouth full.'"

- McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski reacts to his recent viral fame

__________

“To put it bluntly, an X post today receives less than 3% of the views a single tweet delivered seven years ago.”

- The Electronic Frontier Foundation’s Kenyatta Thomas on why the organisation has quit X

Ever felt like launching your own social media platform? It’s not easy.

Issam Hijazi launched UpScrolled as a solo project in July 2025; and it now has 5M+ users.

UpScrolled differentiates itself with chronological feeds, no algorithms, and a strict no data-selling policy

Growth surged following TikTok’s US ownership deal, when the platform jumped from 150K to 2.5M+ users in weeks.

However, UpScrolled now faces backlash over moderation limits and extremist content concerns.

He Started a Social Network Alone. Then 5 Million People Signed Up

__________

Also this week:

• Meta, YouTube, Snapchat, and TikTok increasingly deny being “social media” companies, rebranding as AI, entertainment, or streaming platforms amid reputational damage

A new study shows that a short digital detox can reverse effects of heavy social media use.

A two-week detox cut screen time from 314 to 161 minutes daily. Cognitive gains matched reversing 10 years of age-related decline

One-week studies show anxiety down 16.1%, depression 24.8%, insomnia 14.5%.

My dopamine addiction is out of control, so perhaps I need to give this serious consideration!

__________

Also spotted:

• Researchers warn algorithms are driving polarization and reducing real connections, as a new study finds social feeds are becoming less “social,” especially for Reform UK voters

What’s going on with Khaby Lame’s $975M TikTok-linked deal?

Rich Sparkle stock surged after the deal’s announcement, then crashed over 90% as deal details remained unclear

Major brokerages have blocked trading, while Lame himself has stayed silent (yes, I know that’s on brand for him), raising doubts about whether this mega-deal is even a real thing…

TikTok's top star teased a $975 million deal and then went silent. Red flags are piling up.

__________

More WTF this week:

• A teenage Minecraft YouTuber raised $1,234,567 for a meme prediction market called Giggles

• The FBI extracted a suspect’s deleted Signal messages… because they were saved in their iPhone notification database

• Three men were arrested after yelling “Gun” in crowded movie theatre for a social media prank

• Russia's attempts to restrict the use of virtual private networks triggered a widespread banking outage, according to Telegram founder Pavel Durov

Canon is looking for a Social Media Content Creator Programme Specialist. [London, UK]

__________

More social media jobs:

• The Wikimedia Foundation is hiring a Media Partnerships Lead [Remote, worldwide]

• The UK Department for Education is recruiting a Social Media Manager [London or Sheffield, UK]

• Premier Inn needs a Social Media Executive [London, UK]

Sorry, folks… reposting Instagram feed posts to Stories does NOT improve reach

Instagram overlord Adam Mosseri just debunked the popular engagement hack…

Instagram chief debunks popular engagement hack

Adam Mosseri said that reposting feed posts to Stories won’t increase reach.

__________

More pro tips:

• Replying to your comments on Facebook boosts engagement:

  Buffer's study of 1M+ Facebook posts found replying to comments drove 9.5% more reactions

• Instagram’s Adam Mosseri also shared some useful features you might have missed

• Pinterest says repetitive content kills engagement and session time, and marketers should diversify formats, visuals, and themes to maximize discovery and performance

__________

More new social stats:

• BREAKING: 49% of people use social media for breaking news, ahead of TV

• BAN HAPPY: 68% of global social media users now back teen social bans

• PODTASTIC: Podcasters on Patreon pulled in $629 million in 2025, surging 33% YoY

• NOT WORKING: 70% of children under the age of 16 in Australia are still accessing and using social apps despite the ban

• MAKING IT SNAPPY: Over 45,000 people joined Snapchat’s Topic Chats feature during March Madness 2026, with 40,000 active users and 90,000+ messages sent concurrently at its peak

Does including a link in your X post kill reach?

The answer appears to be yes!

Analysis by Nieman Lab of X posts by 18 publishers showed links in tweets sharply reduced engagement.

The study revealed The New York Times included links in 88% of its tweets, and averaged 383 engagements per post, despite having 53M followers.

On the other end of the spectrum, engagement-maxxing account Globe Eye News with 866K followers never included links in its posts and saw a median 8,418 engagements per tweet

__________

More charts:

• BAN ‘EM: Support for a minimum age on social media, as it stands across Europe

Apple accused of scraping millions of YouTube videos for AI training

Lawsuit says Apple used a dataset comprising millions of YouTube videos to train an AI model, as described in a study published in late 2024.

__________

Also spotted this week…

• Teen social media bans have been branded a “lazy fix” by experts as the global crackdown grows. [CNBC]

• The EU failed to renew CSAM scanning rules before a 3 April deadline, leaving platforms in legal limbo. [Politico]

• The EU is ramping up age verification enforcement after finding major platforms fail age checks. [Wired $$$]

• Perplexity has been accused of sharing AI conversations with Meta and Google. [Ars Technica]

• Australia says its under-16 social media ban can’t work without global backing. [Politico]

• Greece looks set to ban under-15s from social media starting in 2027. [The Guardian]

• Massachusetts lawmakers are looking to usher in ‘most restrictive’ social media ban in the USA. Under-14s would be blocked entirely, while 14–15 year olds would need verified parental consent. [Independent]

• Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has demanded stronger action on social media ‘outrage economy’. [The Guardian]

• Top creators could replace armies of ‘clippers’ with AI. [The Hollywood Reporter]

• TikTok’s North America ads chief Khartoon Weiss is leaving after nearly six years. [Business Insider $$$]

• Meta has committed to spending additional $21 billion with CoreWeave as AI costs keep rising. [CNBC]

• Sony and Universal have asked a judge to dismiss X’s antitrust lawsuit as “baseless” retaliation. [TorrentFreak]

• OpenAI reportedly says Elon Musk and Meta are coordinating ‘Attacks’ against it. [Gizmodo]

• Ireland has begun testing a digital ID wallet that includes social media age verification tools. [Bloomberg $$$]

• Meta has suspended all Mercor contracts after a hack hit the AI data supplier’s systems. [Social Media Today]

• Meta has warned that Europe faces an AI “relevance crisis” as the US-China race intensifies. [Meta Newsroom]

• A new YouTube report shows indie animation is rising as studio output declines. [The Hollywood Reporter]

More new features and updates:

• TikTok has introduced an exclusive in-app experience to support Ella Langley's Dandelion. [TikTok Newsroom]

• CapCut has tweaked its video editor UI. [@theahmedghanem]

Social media is turning into a freak show

The ecosystem is incredibly unhealthy, especially on Twitter. But if it dies, good riddance.

__________

Also worth a read:

• How Meta’s AI push is changing ad creation

• ‘It started with a tipoff’: How a Guardian investigation exposed child sex trafficking on Facebook and Instagram

• Can AI responses be influenced? The SEO industry is trying

• Questions linger about the long-term viability of X

• Social platforms are facing increased scrutiny. How long will advertisers stick around?

Using emojis at work… harmless fun, right? 💩🤷‍♂️

Maybe not.

A new study shows using emojis at work can make you seem less competent.

• Negative emojis significantly damage professionalism and perception 🤬

• Even positive emojis can feel insincere in the wrong context 👍

• Researchers say emojis only help when they match neutral or positive messages 😐

So, maybe think twice about adding that winking emoji in your next work email 😉

Using Emojis at Work? You’re Not Going to Like This Study

In the words of Porky Pig…. “That’s all folks…!”

Really showing my age with that cultural reference. 😏

I’m heading off to finalise plans for the next edition of Geekout Interviews…

I’m in talks with execs at Adobe, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Threads, to secure another exclusive interview.

Got ideas for someone I should try to pursuade (blackmail) into revealing more insider information?

Hit reply to this email, and send me some names.

Goodbye, geeks!

P.S. This newsletter is edited by Martin SFP Bryant

Advertise in Geekout
Reach 30K engaged social media pros 
Geekout sponsorships costs less than you think

Hello, geeks!

This week, I experienced my first mortifying AI mistake. 😬

You know the kind… the one where your soul leaves your body mid-scroll.

Giphy

I thought I’d share it in case you’ve had a rough week — maybe it’ll give you a moment of amusement.

Earlier this week, I had a video call with a potential client who invited me to speak at an event and collaborate on a new social media project.

It was a good opportunity — but after thinking it through, the payment terms didn’t quite stack up.

So I drafted an email outlining my concerns, with a counteroffer. Hit send. Thought no more about it.

The next day, they replied saying they respected my position, but suggested revisiting the opportunity later in the year.

Fair enough. It happens. No big deal.

I scrolled back up the email thread to refresh my memory on what was originally offered — and what I’d sent.

That’s when my heart stopped. Head hit desk. Immediate regret.

Before sending the email, I’d asked ChatGPT to quickly redraft it — just to tighten the tone and clean up any typos.

The edits looked good. So I copy/pasted the revised version into my reply.

In my ADHD haste, I didn’t double-check it. Big mistake.

This is the email I actually sent: 😱 

-
FML. 🤦🏻‍♂️

Have you experienced a fear-inducing AI fail?

Drop me a reply with your ChatGPT mistakes.

__________

2 cool things…

❤️ I LOVE this free AI toolkit built by social media managers—for social media managers — AI prompts, cheat sheets, shortcuts that work.

-
🕹️ TikTok has hidden a secret emoji-based game inside your DMs. [ad]

EXCLUSIVE ▶︎ GEEKOUT INTERVIEWS…

Why Instagram's Edits is a boutique. NOT a Costco! 📱

-
I’ve been wanting to shake up Geekout for a while…

Break out of the weekly scroll… and get closer to the people actually pulling the strings.

Every week, I break down what’s happening across social — New features. Platform shifts. Algorithm chaos.

But what if we could get access to the people behind the scenes…

• 🏢 The people at Meta, TikTok, LinkedIn, X, YouTube, Snapchat building and controlling the platforms

• 🔥 The top social talent posting through it for your favorite brand accounts

And what if I could get YOUR questions answered too?

So last month I finally did something about it.

I opened up my social media insiders contact list.
Dropped a few messages to Meta.
Asked to speak to the person behind the Edits app.

And they said yes!

So… here’s the first edition of Geekout Interviews…

Kicking off with Instagram’s product director for the Edits app… Matt Simari.

In this edition of Geekout Interviews…

• 🤔 Why Matt thinks Instagram's Edits is a boutique. NOT a Costco.

• ✨ Get a first look at a NEW feature coming soon to Edits

• 🤐 Uncover the ONE question I asked Matt, but he refused to answer!
  …and more!

Watch / Read the FULL interview — Geekout Interviews… Matt Simari 

Instagram starts testing Snapchat+ style premium subscription ‘Instagram Plus’

Among the premium features on Instagram is the ability to view a Story without the poster seeing that you viewed it and the option to see how many people have rewatched your Story.

2. YouTube staff aimed for “viewer addiction” to boost engagement, court docs reveal [TROUBLING]

3. UK social media users are posting a lot less as AI use surges [PASSIVE-SCROLLING]

4. Meta is considering killing funding for its Oversight Board [CUTTING]

5. TikTok could launch banking features as it applies for fintech license in Brazil [BANKING]

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Does this sound familiar…? 

Your boss discovered AI last week after reading one LinkedIn post…

…And now he wants a new social strategy of “do more with AI.” 😭 

Cool. But how?! 🤬

Most AI advice is built for developers. 

Not for busy social media teams!

Meanwhile you’re…

• 😠 Rewriting ChatGPT outputs for the 5th time 

• 🙏 Trying to make captions sound human 

• 🤔 Wondering if AI is actually saving time… or stealing it 

Here’s the fix 👇 

Agorapulse just dropped a FREE AI toolkit built for social teams (not engineers) 

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• 🎥 2 Webinars: Time-saving AI shortcuts that will save you hours + How to make AI sound like YOUR brand  

• 🔥 Cheat Sheet: Ready-to-use killer AI prompts built for social teams

• ✅ Checklist: A step-by-step checklist to stop you getting generic AI output 

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Instagram’s answer to Snapchat+ looks like a cheap stalker toolkit for IG obsessives

Meta is testing an Instagram Plus subscription service with exclusive features

We knew Meta was working on premium subscriptions for its main platforms. And now the first to actually make it out in the wild has arrived from Instagram.

Say hello to Instagram Plus, currently being tested in a handful of markets.

The subscription gives you a bunch of features that might appeal to Instagram addicts: create multiple story audiences, get story rewatch insights, search your story viewers list, preview stories (more on that in a moment, extend your story’s expiry, send super hearts to stories, and spotlight your story.

Some people have labeled the Instagram bolt-on a ‘stalker toolkit',’ by giving users the ability to view stories anonymously. However, on the flip side, Instagram Plus also allows you see which of your followers are obsessing over you with story rewatch super-powers.

None of these features are going to set your world alight unless you live and breathe Instagram to an obsessive degree. For most pros and creators, a Meta Verified subscription has the features you’ll want.

It’s better to think of Instagram Plus as being akin Snapchat+: extra features for the the most ardent users. And just like Snapchat+, I can imagine Instagram will add more features to Plus as time goes on.

Perhaps reflecting the value of the features, or maybe just because it’s a test right now, pricing for Instagram Plus is DIRT CHEAP.

Meta hasn’t said which markets it’s being tested in, but TechCrunch rounded up the pricing it had seen:

“It costs MX$39 (approximately $2.20 USD) per month in Mexico, ¥319 per month (approximately $2 USD) in Japan, and PHP 65 per month (approximately $1.07 USD) in the Philippines.”

That’s incredibly low! So if it rolls out more widely in its current form, Instagram Plus won’t break the bank, but then it won’t give you THAT many interesting features, either.

I’d expect both the feature set… and the price… to increase over time.

Meta’s first prescription AI glasses | Credit: Meta

• Meta launched new prescription AI glasses in ‘Blayzer’ and ‘Scriber’ styles, with new features including Nutrition Tracking and Neural Handwriting (I’m tempted by these)

• Meta's longtime content policy chief Bickert is leaving to teach at Harvard

• Meta is assembling an elite AI lab to upgrade Facebook and Instagram algorithms

• Meta rolled out intensive “AI Week” training to turn employees into active AI builders

• Facebook is testing a new way to interact with Stories, with quick replies and a separate tab for emojis above the reply box

• Facebook started displaying friends’ Notes as Stories, with two quick action buttons

• Facebook introduced a refreshed music info menu with options to add tracks to Spotify, use them in a Story, and more

• Facebook added options for Pages to include service credentials, specialties and services, and media kit links

• Facebook is testing a new Creator Activity feature in broadcast channels that directs users to a dedicated feed showing content they may have missed from Pages they follow.

• Facebook now allows you to “manage product link” per Reel

• Messenger on the web could live on, without the Messenger name and at a new URL, according to a new notice from Meta

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Instagram’s Teleprompter feature for Reels | Credit: @oncescuradu

• Instagram added a teleprompter for Reels, just like the one in Edits

• Instagram is testing offline Reels with an auto-download feature for nonstop scrolling

• Instagram now lets you schedule Trial Reels

• Instagram’s design lead Brett Westervelt has been appointed head of the Edits app

• Instagram will “substantially reduce” the use of the ‘PG-13’ rating in a deal with the Motion Picture Association

• Instagram now lets you require approval before you’re added back to a group chat you’ve left

• Instagram now lets you press and hold on a group chat to see who's in the chat

• Instagram now lets you add text on screen with a new Instant camera feature

• Instagram has increased the default selected duration for a song added to a story from 15 to 20 seconds

• Instagram now suggests music for your Story

• Instagram has been spotted showing a ‘Use Template’ button in the main Reels feed on videos built using templates

• Instagram now displays recently saved places from your saved posts on maps within DMs

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WhatsApp is testing a native CarPlay app | Credit: WABetaInfo

• WhatsApp is testing a CarPlay app, replacing its previous Siri-only integration

• WhatsApp is working on a feature that lets you see a list of which of their contacts are currently online

• WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that lets channel admins reply to their updates

• WhatsApp is testing a feature that adds new Unicode 17.0 emojis directly to the built-in keyboard

• WhatsApp is testing a feature to replace blank profiles with photos from the address book

• WhatsApp Business is testing a new “Alerts” feature that displays account-related notifications within the app.

• WhatsApp's former security chief is “not done fighting” after his lawsuit alleging serious security flaws was dismissed

• Threads added two new reply filters on iOS, making it easier to manage conversations and keep your community in check

• Threads now displays the number of recent posts added by an account in search results

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X testing new photo editor on iOS | Credit: @oncescuradu

• X is rolling out a new photo editor on iOS, with more advanced features

• X has been strongly endorsed by the US State Department as part of its global anti-propaganda strategy

• X has asked a court to dismiss a music piracy lawsuit, claiming there is no evidence of it actively encouraging piracy

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Credit: TikTok

• TikTok has integrated Cameo into its app, giving creators new monetisation options

• TikTok now has an ‘Archive’ feature for stories and thoughts.

• New York City has reversed its TikTok ban for government agencies following the app’s change of US ownership

• YouTube launched “Comments to Heart” to let channels auto-like positive comments

• YouTube officially launched ‘Stations’, which let creators turn playlists into nonstop streaming channels

• YouTube has received an open letter from 200+ experts, schools, and groups urging it to block AI-generated kids’ content

• YouTube is expanding its Coachella 2026 livestream setup with seven stages, starting 10 April

• YouTube will host its Brandcast event in NYC on 13 May, pushing the platform as the future of media

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• Reddit is the most-cited source by AI search and chatbots in 2026, according to a new study

• Reddit opened up its Reddit Pro tools to all publishers in free public beta

• Pinterest is pushing performance ads, betting measurement will unlock more ad spend

• Snapchat expanded Creator Subscriptions to all eligible users

• Snapchat revealed the winners of its first-ever “Snappys” awards, including David Dobrik, DJ Khaled, and Kylie Jenner

• Snapchat is working on a way to share music without using a sticker

• Twitch upgraded mobile streaming with new tools to boost creator control, including multi-tasking while streaming + disconnect protection

• Telegram upgraded polls along with adding support for live photos on iOS and Android

• CapCut launched a new content creation app on desktop, called CapCut Video Studio

• Netflix is working on Discord-style social features for its games

• Beehiiv is launching a podcasting platform to take on Substack and Patreon

YouTube has been testing AI-generated summaries that replace video titles on its home feed… but it’s buggy and a bit useless…

YouTube is testing more AI on the home screen, and we hate it already

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Also spotted this week…

• Meta rolled out a new AI system to make ads more personalised and efficient

• Meta is testing an AI “Describe Your Audience” tool to auto-generate targeting interests for ads

• Meta is injecting AI into risk reviews to hunt down product dangers early

• YouTube’s conversational ‘Ask’ button is rolling out to TV apps

• X now gives Premium subscribers access by default to the SuperGrok Lite tier

• xAI’s Grok app now lets you choose between speed and quality for generated images

• Bluesky unveiled Attie, an AI assistant that lets users create custom feeds from simple prompts

• Telegram added an AI editor that can rewrite, translate, and style your message text directly in chat, and made it easier to create bots with AI

• CapCut expanded access to the Seedance 2.0 AI model globally in the CapCut mobile and web apps

• CapCut is rolling out AI Clipping to more users

• Google now lets you direct avatars through prompts in its Vids app, including YouTube export

Elon Musk and the SEC are heading toward trial over 2022 the billionaire’s Twitter share purchases.

The SEC alleges late disclosure cost investors over $150 million.

Settlement talks failed; both sides reject alternative dispute resolution.

Musk, SEC Say Fight Over Twitter Share Stockpile May Go to Trial

• Elon Musk faces an escalation in legal problems over his Twitter acquisition, after a judge allowed investors to combine their claims into a class action lawsuit.

• The judge who once revoked Elon Musk’s pay package is stepping aside from several ongoing cases against him after she ‘liked’ a LinkedIn post mocking him 😬

A new Ofcom report reveals the number of UK social media users posting content has fallen to 49%, down from 61% in 2024.

Users have shifted to passive video feed consumption, favouring engaging in DMs over posting publicly.

I spoke to BBC News about why Brits are using social differently in 2026…

With so much fake news and AI nonsense clogging up our feeds on a daily basis, it’s amazing anyone still bothers with April Fool’s Day jokes.

But bother they do, and some were actually good!

Aldi UK made the most effort I saw this year, getting into the legal game:
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Instagram post

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Who knew bread and haircare products were the perfect match?
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Twitter tweet

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Snapchat mocked Instagram’s many rip-offs of its features…
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Twitter tweet

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Meanwhile… Instagram’s ‘joke’ (unsurprisingly) didn’t land so well…
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Check out this round-up of the rest of the best April Fools Day pranks by brands here: 👇

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The best April Fools' Day pranks 2026 from Dyson to Subway

Sexy fruit is a big deal. (Never thought I’d write that sentence)

Fruit Love Island, an AI-generated dating show, is pulling over 10 million views per episode on TikTok with its parody of Love Island.

Despite its “AI slop” visuals, viewers are hooked on the story and voting outcomes.

BUT: Its creator has threatened to shut the series down claiming mass content reporting, lost content, and a wiped YouTube backup.

Oh the drama!

Fruit Love Island creator threatens to shut down series after mass TikTok removals

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More viral news this week:

• Chinese creator Chen Qin has gone viral for carving intricate carrot sculptures using only her teeth

• Aura reading has become Gen Z's latest obsession as brands cash in fast

That KitKat theft… Was it a real heist, or a publicity stunt?

The world has been split this week over whether or not a truck containing 12 tonnes of limited edition Formula One KitKat bars was really stolen, as the brand claims.

Parent company Nestlé insists it was real and not an April Fool’s Day joke.

But either way, it’s been catnip for other brands like McDonald’s, Microsoft, KFC, and Ryanair.

McDonald's To Microsoft, Brands Break The Internet With Memes On KitKat Heist

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More brand news and views:

• Apple is leaning into using its viral “Little Finder Guy” mascot from its MacBook Neo campaign on TikTok

• That McDonald's viral video was good for memes. But what about sales?

• Inside The Daily Mail’s creator-led content playbook

• How the music industry is harnessing the power of clippers

• AI influencer discovery tools are changing how agencies cast creators

• How InStyle is reaching the next generation with its original social series

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Also quoted this week:

“I've got our teams on alert to take down content doxxing or threatening the people on your team. Let me know if there's anything else I can do to help.”

- Mark Zuckerberg texting Elon Musk in February 2025, offering special help that the average Meta user certainly wouldn’t get

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“When I speak to our creators — and I speak to them several times a week — what they always tell me is that no matter what they look to do, they understand that YouTube is their home. There would be no “Beast Games” if there wasn’t MrBeast on YouTube. Jimmy knows that.

- YouTube CEO Neal Mohan is hopefully not getting too complacent about competition for talent

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“This is the platforms trying to get children to stay on for longer, to get addicted. I can’t see that there’s a case for that, and therefore I can see we’re going to have to act.”

- UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer wants to stop social platforms hooking kids

YouTube now reaches 2 billion daily users, with 90% of US teens on the platform.