Meta Wants More AI Bots on Facebook and Instagram

Metrics, Engagement, and Investor Incentives

• Many suspect Meta will use AI bots to boost “engagement” metrics (DAU/MAU, impressions), even if not literally counted as users.
• Argument: markets reward visible AI bets and rising engagement more than clear product value; GPUs → AI features → higher stock, regardless of user benefit.
• Others note Meta could fake users more cheaply without AI, so bots are more about filling content gaps and selling more ad inventory than raw user count.

AI Content, Bots, and “Dead Internet”

• Strong concern that feeds are already filled with low‑quality human posts, scams, and AI “slop”; more bots = even less authentic internet.
• Some think Meta will replace messy human content with sanitized AI influencers and comments, appealing to advertisers and brands.
• “Dead internet theory” (bots talking to bots, humans marginalized) is repeatedly referenced as no longer speculative but becoming productized.

User Experience on Facebook/Instagram

• Many describe feeds dominated by: ads, suggested pages/groups, AI-ish viral junk, and almost no posts from actual friends.
• A subset reports better feeds by aggressively hiding/“don’t show me this” and using hidden chronological “Friends/Following” feeds via special URLs.
• Network effects, events, specialized hobby groups, and Marketplace keep many from leaving despite frustration.

Democracy, Propaganda, and Political Discourse

• Some welcome more bots to turn echo chambers into “cacophony chambers,” hoping noise cancels organized troll farms.
• Others argue that’s identical to modern disinformation strategy: overwhelm with contradictory narratives to induce confusion and inaction.
• Debate over whether online polarization stems more from troll farms, platform censorship, or selection effects favoring extremists.

AI Companions and Synthetic Relationships

• Multiple comments anticipate AI romantic partners, “celebrity simulators,” and networks where millions of AI followers praise each user.
• Existing apps that do this are cited as evidence there is real demand, especially among lonely users.
• Some see this as dystopian psychological conditioning / “wireheading”; others say it might be less harmful than human‑run echo chambers.

Business Strategy, Vision, and Hype

• Meta is seen as chasing hype cycles (Live video, metaverse, now generative AI) by copying fast‑growing products (TikTok, character‑AI, etc.).
• Several argue leadership lacks a coherent consumer vision beyond maximizing engagement and ad revenue, even at the cost of core social value.
• Open‑sourcing LLaMA is interpreted as both commoditizing competitors and enabling a flood of cheap AI content for Meta’s own platforms.

Alternatives and Coping Strategies

• Some advocate abandoning large social networks for small forums, blogs, email/SMS/WhatsApp groups, or fediverse platforms.
• Others argue most non‑technical users neither care about AI vs human content nor privacy, and prefer low‑effort, passive “push” updates from a broad network.
• Widespread sentiment that major social platforms have undergone severe “enshittification,” but viable, mass‑adopted alternatives remain unclear.