Meta will collect data from user interactions with its AI tools in order to serve targeted ads across Facebook, Instagram and Threads.
There will be no way to opt out of the new policy, which will come into effect on 16 December for all users except those in the UK, South Korea and the European Union.
Both voice chats and text exchanges with AI will be scanned in order learn more about a user and what products they might be interested in buying.
“We will soon use your interactions with AI at Meta to personalise the content and ads you see, including things like posts and reels,” Meta said in a blog post.
“For example, if you chat with Meta AI about hiking, we may learn that you’re interested in hiking… As a result, you might start seeing recommendations for hiking groups, posts from friends about trails, or ads for hiking boots.”
Meta AI, which works like a chatbot similar to ChatGPT, is integrated into the company’s suite of apps, which currently have around 3.5 billion users worldwide.
It can also be accessed through a standalone app, with chief executive Mark Zuckerberg saying that people use the generative artificial intelligence for everything from how-to tasks, to personal therapy.
“You open up the app, and you can talk to it about whatever you want: From the news, to an issue that you’re dealing with, to just anything you want to learn about,” the tech boss said in April.
“Over time, you’re going to be able to let Meta AI know a whole lot about you, and the people you care about across our apps if you want.”
Meta currently delivers targeted ads based on what people post, interact with, or who they are connected to.
Roughly 1 billion people interact with the AI tool each month, according to Meta, though certain topics will be exempt from the new ad targeting, including religious beliefs, sexual orientation and political views.
Notifications will be sent to users on 7 October to inform them of the update.
