This week, YouTube and Snapchat have released so many new features that it feels like Christmas, Instagram is updating its UI, and Pinterest are making users very happy. And, our Digital 2026 report has landed a few months earlier than usual – lucky you.
Meanwhile, TikTok users are pranking their family with AI-generated awkward and slightly scary situations. And, the 6-7 trend is taking over feeds (and classrooms), leaving us oldies quite confused. Read on for more social media news.
Facebook rolls out AI suggestions for your camera roll
Image credit: TechCrunch screenshot of Facebook’s app, June 2025
Facebook is rolling out a new feature in the U.S. and Canada that will suggest AI edits to photos in your camera roll. Basically, the feature will be able to take a look at your camera roll and come up with creative ideas for your images. Don’t worry, Facebook isn’t going to automatically start snooping through your pics; you need to opt in to the feature to get these AI recommendations.
Following on from adding direct messaging to the platform, Threads is adding group chat messaging for up to 50 people. So, you can now share text posts, videos, gifs and emojis with 50 people all at once. To preventspam messages, you will need to follow the account to be added to their group chat. In addition to group chats, messaging will also finally arrive in the EU.
Instagram is rolling out its new UI to more users, moving Reels and DMs into the second and third tabs on the bottom navigation bar. While only selected users are currently seeing the prompt, Instagram chief Adam Mosseri says that option is coming to all users shortly. So, whether you like it or not, the change is coming.
YouTube is rolling out a host of new features to make it easier to navigate the app, including an updated playback display, refreshed video descriptions and threaded comments. It’s also added fun custom like animation based on the type of content you are viewing. YouTube is also expanding access to voice replies and the access to its courses option for creators.
Pinterest is allowing users to reduce the amount of AI-generated content they see on the app. Users can now filter out GenAI content through their settings and select different categories they would like to apply this to. However, the pop-up that appears when you toggle off GenAI images says, “you’ll start seeing fewer” AI images in your feed, not none. Either way, social is pretty happy about it.
When you read content on X, you should be able to verify its authenticity. This is critical to getting a pulse on important issues happening in the world.
As part of that, we're experimenting with displaying new information on profiles, including which country an account is… pic.twitter.com/OYgT1OiJdA
With AI developments making it harder to distinguish between humans and bots, X is working on a new feature to show more information on the users behind X profiles. This includes details on when the account was created, its location, the number of username changes it has made, and how it’s using X’s features. The feature will be tested first on X employee profiles before it is rolled out more widely.
Snapchat announced several new AR updates at its Lens Fest event. It’s enhancing its Lens Studio with creation tools like “Realistic StyleGen,” an improved “FaceGen,” and new options for generating 3D selfie effects. They are also introducing “Blocks,” which are pre-designed AR templates that creators can easily drop into their projects. And, new features are coming to Specs glasses, including Travel Mode and EyeConnect. Finally, Snapchat is introducing a “Commerce Kit” to allow for direct payments within Lenses and is expanding its AR gaming capabilities.
Digital 2026 is here! The latest and most comprehensive edition in our Global Digital Reports series, Digital 2026 brings together everything you need to know about global trends across social media, the internet, mobile, AI, and e-commerce. This year’s key headlines reveal that more than 6 billion people are now online, over 1 billion people use AI every month, and digital channels continue to dominate global ad spend.
