Instagram’s top boss is missing the point about AI on the platform | The VergeSkip to main contentThe homepageThe VergeThe Verge logo.The VergeThe Verge logo.TechReviewsScienceEntertainmentAICESHamburger Navigation ButtonThe homepageThe VergeThe Verge logo.Hamburger Navigation ButtonNavigation DrawerThe VergeThe Verge logo.Login / Sign UpcloseCloseSearchTechExpandAmazonAppleFacebookGoogleMicrosoftSamsungBusinessSee all techGadgetsExpandLaptopsPhonesTVsHeadphonesSpeakersWearablesSee all gadgetsReviewsExpandSmart Home ReviewsPhone ReviewsTablet ReviewsHeadphone ReviewsSee all reviewsAIExpandOpenAIAnthropicSee all AIVerge ShoppingExpandBuying GuidesDealsGift GuidesSee all shoppingPolicyExpandAntitrustPoliticsLawSecuritySee all policyScienceExpandSpaceEnergyEnvironmentHealthSee all scienceEntertainmentExpandTV ShowsMoviesAudioSee all entertainmentGamingExpandXboxPlayStationNintendoSee all gamingStreamingExpandDisneyHBONetflixYouTubeCreatorsSee all streamingTransportationExpandElectric CarsAutonomous CarsRide-sharingScootersSee all transportationFeaturesVerge VideoExpandTikTokYouTubeInstagramPodcastsExpandDecoderThe VergecastVersion HistoryNewslettersExpandThe Verge DailyInstallerVerge DealsNotepadOptimizerRegulatorThe StepbackArchivesStoreSubscribeFacebookThreadsInstagramYoutubeRSSThe VergeThe Verge logo.Instagram’s top boss is missing the point about AI on the platformComments DrawerCommentsLoading commentsGetting the conversation ready...TechCloseTechPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All TechAICloseAIPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All AIMetaCloseMetaPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All MetaInstagram’s top boss is missing the point about AI on the platformAdam Mosseri is just looking for the guy who did this.Adam Mosseri is just looking for the guy who did this.by Allison JohnsonCloseAllison JohnsonPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Allison JohnsonJan 21, 2026, 2:15 PM UTCLinkShareGiftWhat is an authentic photo? Image: Cath Virginia / The VergeAllison JohnsonCloseAllison JohnsonPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Allison Johnson is a senior reviewer with over a decade of experience writing about consumer tech. She has a special interest in mobile photography and telecom. Previously, she worked at DPReview.A couple of weeks ago, Adam Mosseri posted to his grid. In a series of messages, Instagram’s top exec laid out his concerns for the platform in the coming year, largely around AI. The post was equal parts Working Through It, a sounding of alarms, and a rallying cry to creators who use the platform: AI is about to be everywhere on Instagram, and the best way to stand out from “inauthentic” content is to be an authentic, original voice.“Everything that made creators matter — the ability to be real, to connect, to have a voice that couldn’t be faked — is now accessible to anyone with the right tools,” he says. The people want gritty realness, not glossy fakeness easily duped by AI. Which may be true, but I think Mosseri is missing the point: Instagram is already overrun by robotic, same-y looking content, and it’s not just made by AI. It’s made by humans churning out post after post following the same formula; one designed to keep us scrolling, liking, and sharing.Throughout his post, Mosseri actually makes a few points I agree with. He mentions that as AI-generated imagery gets more sophisticated and easy to produce, it’ll be easier to label what’s real than to put a watermark on every AI-created image. That’s why Google’s Pixel 10 phones put content credentials on every photo taken with one of its cameras, not just the ones made with AI. Mosseri also mentions that AI will get better at mimicking the low-fi phone camera look that signals authenticity — though I’d argue that’s already happening now, not at some point in the near future. There’s a real threat to Instagram’s business model, even if we disagree on the timeline.But I have one major problem with his argument. Again and again, Mosseri mentions “authentic” content, implying something human-made versus inauthentic content created by AI. He calls this a “major shift: authenticity is becoming infinitely reproducible.” To be sure, there are plenty of fantastic creators posting great work to Instagram. But a lot of human-made content on Instagram is inauthentic too — and that’s a feature of algorithmic social media, not a bug.Creators learn what the algorithm rewards, and then they go do more of that thing. Eventually, you get a lot of people posting things that look awfully similar. How else do you end up with two influencers whose vibe is so similar that nobody could tell if it happened by coincidence or if one of them was copying the other? The algorithm rewards whatever keeps us glued to the platform, not the most thought-provoking or original stuff. The algorithm made us the robots. And that inauthentic, predictable human-made content will be the first thing that AI replaces. That’s what AI does at its core: make predictions based on its training data. Mosseri is right to be worried.I opened Instagram recently to a video of a mom repeatedly counting her kids as she watches them in a public place. “One, two, three,” she nods her head as she accounts for them, then starts again. “Who else does this too? It’s not at all exhausting,” the caption reads. I don’t, but that’s because I only have one to keep track of. But I remembered the video, because I watched it back when she posted it in 2024. The reposting strategy is a direct play to the algorithm — casting the same net again to hook some new followers, or maybe seeing if that particular video lands better in a different time and context. I see the same thing on Threads, where a comedian I follow will try the exact same joke weeks or months after they first posted it to try and catch a different algorithmic wave. Even people posting “authentic” content have to act like robots to win the algorithmic feed.RelatedInstagram wants me to make content — I just want to post a photoI don’t think any of this comes as a revelation to Mosseri, though. His post hints that he understands this reality: “Flattering imagery is cheap to produce and boring to consume,” he says. Which, sure. But if Instagram’s first job is to show you fresh content when you open the app and keep you scrolling while you’re there, quantity will always win over quality. You know what’s expensive and time-consuming to produce? Content that “feels real,” the stuff that’s the least sustainable to produce when every influencer is under pressure to become a full-time small business owner of one. Unless Instagram can cook up some brilliant new way to incentivize real creators, I think Mosseri can count on getting more of that inauthentic content — whether it’s made by a human or not.Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.Allison JohnsonCloseAllison JohnsonPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Allison JohnsonAICloseAIPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All AIInstagramCloseInstagramPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All InstagramMetaCloseMetaPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All MetaTechCloseTechPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All TechMost PopularMost PopularSony’s TV business is being taken over by TCLHow much can a city take?What a Sony and TCL partnership means for the future of TVsHow BYD beat TeslaSamsung’s discounted microSD Express card more than doubles your Switch 2 storageThe Verge DailyA free daily digest of the news that matters most.Email (required)Sign UpBy submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice. 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Instagram’s top boss is missing the point about AI on the platform

Adam Mosseri is just looking for the guy who did this.

by Allison Johnson

A couple of weeks ago, Instagram’s top exec, Adam Mosseri, posted to his grid, laying out his concerns for the platform in the coming year, largely around AI. The post was a mix of acknowledging the challenges – a “working through it” moment – and issuing a rallying cry to creators. His core argument was that AI is poised to dominate Instagram, and the best way to stand out from “inauthentic” content is to cultivate an authentic, original voice. “Everything that made creators matter — the ability to be real, to connect, to have a voice that couldn’t be faked — is now accessible to anyone with the right tools,” he stated. The sentiment reflects a desire to prioritize genuine content over slick, easily-produced imagery.

However, a senior reviewer, Allison Johnson, argues that Mosseri is missing a critical element of the situation. She notes that Instagram is already saturated with robotic, same-y looking content, not solely due to AI, but driven by human behavior. Many users are churning out posts following a formula designed for scrolling, liking, and sharing, prioritizing quantity over quality. While Mosseri correctly identifies the potential threat of sophisticated AI-generated imagery, he overlooks the existing problem of predictable, algorithm-driven content crafted by humans.

Johnson highlights several points of agreement with Mosseri. She acknowledges that as AI becomes more capable of producing images, it will be increasingly difficult to distinguish real content from AI-generated content, making watermarks a less effective solution. She also notes Google’s Pixel 10 phones’ content credentials as a leading example. Furthermore, she observes that AI is already evolving to mimic the low-fi aesthetic of older phone cameras, something that’s happening now, rather than in the future. Despite disagreements about the timeline, Johnson concedes that Instagram faces a significant business threat from AI.

Ultimately, Johnson contends that Mosseri's argument is predicated on a flawed premise: that authenticity is a quality uniquely possessed by human creators, separate from inauthentic content produced by AI. She points out that much human-made content on Instagram already leans towards the inauthentic—a product of algorithmic rewards and learned behaviors. Creators, driven by the pursuit of visibility, inevitably fall into patterns, creating content that looks remarkably similar, driven by the algorithm rather than genuine creativity. This results in a proliferation of predictable “robot” content—the primary target of AI replacement. The core function of AI – prediction based on training data – reflects this tendency.

To illustrate her point, Johnson references a recent Instagram video: a mother counting her children as she observes them in public. The video gained traction due to its reposting strategy – designed to hook new followers and test its visibility in different contexts. This method of “fishing” with content, she argues, is not dissimilar to the behaviors of many other creators, regardless of whether they’re human or AI. The same tactic was observed on Threads, as a comedian tries the same joke weeks after its initial posting. Even creators attempting “authentic” content are forced to act like robots to succeed.

Johnson concludes that Mosseri's argument is built on a deceptive assumption: that creators are inherently different from AI. She recognizes that Mosseri's concern is valid, given that algorithm-driven metrics incentivize predictable content. However, she argues that AI isn’t simply replacing authentic creators; it’s capitalizing on the inherent inauthenticity already present within the Instagram ecosystem. The algorithm, in a sense, has already made us all robots, and AI is simply accelerating that trend.