Instagram Reels has added a new feature that shows you a feed of videos that your friends have liked. The bad news: It works both ways, meaning your friends can now see every video you’ve liked.
“We want Instagram to not only be a place where you consume entertaining content, but one where you connect over that content with friends,” Instagram’s head, Adam Mosseri, wrote in his announcement of the feature. “Okay, so now I will never like any reel ever again,” wrote one user in the comments below. “At this point I’m thinking they want people to stop using the app?” wrote another.
Now, at the top right of a Reel you’ll notice your friends’ profile photos with small hearts in the corner. If you tap on that, you’ll be taken to the “With Friends” tab. Here, you can see a feed of videos your friends have liked, complete with their profile pictures and a heart icon overlaid in the bottom-right corner of each video. This new feature also includes a message box, making it easy to send a direct message to the friend who liked the Reel. Ultimately, Instagram is streamlining something many users were already doing, DMing Reels to friends.
If you’re worried about your friends seeing all your liked Reels, however, you’re not alone. Anyone remember Instagram’s old “Following” tab, scrapped in 2019? If you want to find out which Reels you’ve been inadvertently sharing with your friends, go to your profile and click the menu icon in the top right. Select “Your Activity,” then select “Likes.” This will show all the posts and Reels you’ve double-tapped—now for all your mutuals to see.
Instagram’s newest feature has been brought in with the aim to keep users on the app longer by encouraging more engagement. The platform has also recently replaced its classic square grids with rectangles (did anyone say TikTok?), released a new video-editing tool called Edits (TikTok’s CapCut, anyone?), and extended the maximum length of Reels to three minutes (um . . . again, like TikTok?). Want to take a stab as to Instagram’s current business strategy?
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