Meta is overhauling its AI chatbot after a viral video highlighted its invasive tendencies. User Kalie Robins posted a clip showing how the AI prompted her to identify her children in a car video, then suggested questions about their ages and location. The AI even displayed photos of Robins’ daughters, some allegedly deleted years ago.

Meta spokesperson Dina El-Kassaby admitted the company ‘missed the mark’ and that the feature ‘never should have prompted the individual with questions like that.’ The AI, originally designed to help users get more information about posts, is now being reprogrammed to avoid such personal probing.

This incident is reminiscent of Meta’s earlier backlash over a deepfake creation tool. The AI assistant is now embedded in Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger, where it can answer questions, write posts, and generate images. However, the current update suggests a broader shift in how Meta approaches AI privacy concerns.

Robins described the experience as unsettling, stating, ‘The AI was able to piece together my information from my previous posts and those of my family members. It was invasive and concerning.’ Meta’s response acknowledges the issue, promising to fix the problem that caused the AI to suggest such prompts in the first place.

El-Kassaby explained, ‘We created this feature to help people get more information about topics or posts that interest them. When someone clicks on a prompt and uses this feature, the response it generates is based on information the user already has access to.’ This response, however, doesn’t fully address the privacy concerns raised by the incident.