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Hello, geeks!
Welcome to this week's debrief for burnt-out social media teams.
There's a lot of developments worth knowing about, so we're diving straight in.
I have something for you.
Meta's launching its own AI agent app: Muse.
But its not in the App Store yet — but I got you. 👊
👉 Here's a secret TestFlight link to the iOS beta.
Open it on your iPhone. Hit Download. Add yourself to the waitlist.
On the topic of Meta…
The company has spent the week arguing with itself.
On Monday it launched an ad campaign explaining how private and lovely its AI glasses are.
Then it remotely disabled the cameras on thousands of pairs, after catching owners taping over the little light that tells everyone else they're being filmed.
Nothing rebuilds public trust like a heartfelt ad campaign and a remote kill switch.
Meanwhile, it's being sued over "millions" of bystanders who never consented to being filmed, Burning Man has had enough, and Norway is weighing up a ban.
Which might explain why Zuckerberg now polls below every public figure except Putin among Americans. 😬
Rough time to be running a charm offensive.
I'm still writing up my brief but blunt take on Meta’s AI smart glasses, by the way.
It's taking longer than I thought — mostly because I keep being asked to take them off.
Supermarkets. Shopping malls. Pubs.
The backlash is very real. And growing.
Annnnnyway….
One quick palate-cleanser before we start.
The internet is drowning in AI slop, most of it seems to land in my LinkedIn feed.
I’m starting to wonder if that “report AI slop” button even works! 😏
This is the exception. Possibly the best dumb fun AI-generated video yet:
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Right. Loads to get through. Let's get into it. 👇
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CPMs climb 20–60% by November. Creator rates go up 20–40%, and the creators you'd actually want are gone by then.
Insense has mapped it out — 42 skim-readable slides, genuinely useful.
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X is forcing US creators into X Money for receive platform payouts [SELF-SERVING]
Meta remotely disabled 1000s of AI glasses after users tampered with recording lights [BRICKING]
EU puts ChatGPT, Reddit, and Roblox under its toughest platform rules [DESIGNATING]
YouTube’s new detection system will auto-label brand deals that creators fail to disclose [OUTING]
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This is the bit where I pitch to any potential Geekout Newsletter sponsors reading this.
Geekout goes out every Friday to 30,000 social media pros who run social for the world’s top brands.
If you sell something that makes their week easier, this is the cheapest way to tell all of them at once.
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Sponsors come back: Metricool, Sprout Social and HubSpot have all booked repeatedly. They love the consistent performance.
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Social platforms realise they went too far with AI
After spending the past few years cramming AI into every crevice of every possible app, social media companies seem to be realising that maybe that wasn’t such a great idea.
The great AI clean up is underway.
Instagram is demoting AI-generated influencers if they don't clearly label their accounts.
Over on LinkedIn, users can now report AI slop content in comments, after the ability to report AI slop posts was greeted with jubilation from users sick of reading utter bilge from people who just post whatever ChatGPT tells them to.
YouTube is cracking down on channels where “news hosts” (actors) read AI-generated political ragebait scripts.
AI labels continue to roll out across platforms to help us figure out which content to ignore.
Even Elon Musk’s SpaceXAI is reining in some of its basest instincts. It’s moving Grok’s Companions feature to an app called Animates (because chatting to an AI-generated ‘friend’ is a niche feature at best). The company has even sued two Grok users accused of creating CSAM with its tech.
All of this is just news from the past week.
Tech bosses are starting to learn that AI (especially when used in a lazy way) sucks the humanity out of social media. Even in this age where we’re consuming feeds of content and posting less ourselves, we want the creators we follow to be real.
Our tech overlords might still be hurtling us to a world where uncontrollable AI agents break free to hack all our data and take over the world, but at least our social media apps might not be full of fake plastic content.
Small mercies, eh?
Meta
/ Facebook
Meta’s privacy-focused ad campaign [Image credit: Meta, via The Verge]
Meta launched an ad campaign to tackle its ‘pervert glasses’ problem, highlighting privacy features
…but Meta has been hit with a class action lawsuit that claims its AI glasses violated “millions” of bystanders’ consent
…and Burning Man is the latest place to suffer problems due to the glasses
Meta is testing robots that could automate 80% of some data centre jobs
Meta smart glasses finally have proper hands-free walking directions
Meta’s teen safety settlement product changes might not actually work, experts say, while letting the company off the hook regardless
Meta’s $17bn settlement isn’t spooking advertisers yet, although new limits could significantly reduce US teen ad inventory
Meta looks set to move Horizon Worlds into a separate app called Horizon Create, focused on playing, remixing and building mobile games with AI
Facebook Groups are now Google’s No.2 forum source
Facebook Login is getting faster with new one-tap sign-ins
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Instagram
Instagram wants you to make regular Reels. [Image credit: Ahmed Ghanem]
Instagram is encouraging users to make creating Reels a routine to grow their account
Instagram appears to be planning to restrict Story scheduling to Meta One subscribers
Instagram is set to add support for Meta Accounts
Instagram upgraded its post text editor, adding more customisation tools and fonts
Instagram added ‘WhatsApp Calls on Instagram’ feature, letting you choose which Instagram profiles can call you on WhatsApp using the number linked to Accounts Center
Instagram is finally testing passkeys for more secure logins
Instagram is testing an option to add links to live videos, including external websites and WhatsApp
Instagram added a new way to create Instants, alongside existing formats like Reels and Stories
Instagram is testing new animations and haptic feedback for action buttons, such as the Follow button
Instagram’s Instant app now supports custom lists, allowing you to choose who you want to share your Instants with.
Instagram Edits now has a carousel editor
Instagram Edits is testing new tabs in Projects, showing all projects alongside dedicated tabs for Videos and Carousels
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Threads
/
WhatsApp
Threads is working on ‘Gems’ [Image credit: Alessandro Paluzzi]
Threads could soon reward you with virtual gems if your post is popular, according to app code
Threads updated its feed icon to feature the full version of the new logo
Threads now labels comments from the original post creator with an ‘Author’ label
Threads is now showing Recent Topics alongside Recommended Communities when creating a post
WhatsApp will now nag you about messages you forgot to send
WhatsApp is building a ‘To You’ inbox for mentions and replies
WhatsApp will now warn users when they connect through unofficial Web clients
WhatsApp users in India can now pay household bills straight from the app
A WhatsApp flaw can expose private photos on some locked Android phones
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X / Twitter
X is changing the way video quote posts look. [Credit: Ahmed Ghanem]
X is testing a new way to quote video posts: collapsing the quoted post to show only the video with a small source label, or keeping it expanded to display the full post caption
X is also testing a new way to display hashtag results in a floating window, with an option to expand it to full screen
X says attackers are targeting accounts with unsolicited password-reset emails following the launch of X Money
X is testing a new way to display quotes posts when they themselves are quoted
X released its ‘Under the hood’ feature to all users, letting you see if their posts or account have visibility-limiting labels
X is now displaying a new NFL Top 100 players card in the Search section
X rival Twitter.now has dropped its, er, very brave name in the face of lawsuit-happy Elon, and will now be called Tweet
SpaceXAI has sued two Grok users accused of creating CSAM
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TikTok
New ways to comment on TikTok [Image credit: TikTok]
TikTok is upgrading comments with voice notes, polls, photo carousels, and live photos
TikTok has been spotted rolling out a new profile design that has previously been spotted in testing
TikTok Shop is rolling out new tools to help sellers sell more, like Batch Upload, as well as new seller rewards and automatic invoicing
TikTok Shop is opening up cross-border selling between the UK and EU
TikTok and the NFL have renewed their partnership with a multiyear global deal. NFL content, highlights and fan experiences will expand across TikTok worldwide
TikTok now has 189 million monthly active users across the EU, adding another 9 million in H1 2026
TikTok has been spotted promising to spotlight creators you’re interested in
EU officials are desperate to get back on TikTok, which is banned for staff
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YouTube
YouTube made it easier to cast videos to other devices [Image credit: YouTube]
YouTube just made your phone a proper remote for the TV. Phones and TVs no longer need to share the same Wi-Fi network to connect
YouTube added ‘Play on a different device’ and a ‘Play last in queue’ buttons on iOS
YouTube says a redesign with bigger thumbnails drives more long-form views
YouTube TV now lets subscribers watch ESPN Unlimited without jumping into the separate ESPN app
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LinkedIn
/
Snapchat
/
Pinterest
Now you can report AI slop in LinkedIn comments, too [Image credit: Search Engine Watch]
LinkedIn is expanding its AI slop reporting option to comments, not just posts (hallelujah!)
LinkedIn launched an invite-only creator cohort called Next Gen Community (still waiting for my invite, LinkedIn 😏)
Snapchat has given user profiles on the web a design refresh
Snapchat rolled out Unified Attribution globally for app advertisers
Snapchat added in-app support for its soon-to-launch Spectacles 4
Twitch finally lets DJs create and share Clips from licensed livestreams
Pinterest is busy positioning itself as the anti-TikTok
CapCut now offers discounts to users who try to cancel their subscription
Looks like Meta’s AI agent (developed under the name ‘Hatch’) will launch with the name Muse and it will have a waitlist.
Want early access? I found the Testflight beta on iOS to join the waitlist.
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Image credit: Testingcatalog
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Also spotted this week…
Google launched an AI-first Canva rival called Google Pics
Google has a new Gemini video tool that can analyse clips, identify what’s happening, and extract details from specific moments
WhatsApp is opening its chats to third-party AI agents, letting users connect up to five agents or bots… but the chats aren’t e2e encrypted
WhatsApp is rolling out AI labels for Channel posts on iPhone
Meta says its new AI model Muse Spark 1.3 sees it finally catching OpenAI and Anthropic
…and you can get as much as 95% off the price if you let Meta train on your data
Meta is using AI to automatically create website conversion events in Events Manager
Meta launched real-time AI voice transcription and system-wide Mac dictation in its Meta AI Mac app
Facebook is testing Meta AI-powered auto-replies for Marketplace messages, helping sellers respond to potential buyers automatically.
Messenger now lets you share files with Meta AI
SpaceXAI is moving Grok’s dodgy Companions feature to an app called Animates
X is giving paid Grok Bot users free API credits
Reddit rolled out its AI-powered Max campaigns to all advertisers
Slack’s bot can now integrate with Adobe apps to carry out creative work straight from a conversation
I helped The Daily Influence make sense of how Alex Cooper’s cancelled Hulu show demonstrates the limits of creator audiences.
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This one hits hard in the week Claude, ChatGPT, and Grok all went down at the same time..!
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Google has signed a multi-year partnership with Beast Industries across Gemini and Health.
MrBeast will use Gemini to plan stunts, logistics, and survival challenges.
Meanwhile, Google Health and Fitbit Air will also feature in future MrBeast challenges.
So if the kids in your life start asking to use Gemini instead of Claude or ChatGPT, you know why!
__________
More brand news and views:
MrBeast has co-authored a novel with a $1 million prize, but early sales figures look rough
Why brands are turning to older creators for authenticity AI can’t fake
Marketers say usage rights are becoming the expensive bit of creator deals
Creator pricing is ‘out of control’ and brands admit they’re overpaying
HBO is collaborating with Snapchat to promote its new Harry Potter TV series
Sony Music is suing Kroger for up to $59m over music in social posts
Sephora is preparing to launch on TikTok Shop on 19 September
"This is a doom loop. If we're not careful, we'll end up with a very expensive way to avoid writing and reading in an ocean of sameness, genericness"
__________
Also quoted this week:
“I think legislation would have been the best answer to this issue… It would be better to have this done by a legislature, which can immediately bind all of our competitors to the same rules."
- A Meta employee infuriated child safety campaigners by appearing to support legislation the company spent millions lobbying against
2.5 hours of social media a day could be a depression tipping point.
Researchers analysed 183,000 US adults across 11 annual surveys from 2014–2024
The depression association shifted noticeably once daily social use reached around 150 mins
Each additional hour beyond that was associated with roughly 17% higher depression odds
But researchers say they cannot prove whether heavy social use causes depression or follows it.
YouTube “news hosts” are actors reading AI-assisted political ragebait.
YouTube channels are paying actors to front formulaic, AI-assisted political news.
One network of channels generated 45M+ views and 90,000 comments in months.
Some actors reportedly earned just $26 per video reading political commentary scripts.
While one operator claimed 500+ “ghost creators” generate billions of monthly views.
Forget deepfakes. Real humans reading AI slop may be harder to spot.
YouTube has started a crackdown.
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More WTF this week:
Political campaigns are quietly paying influencers to endorse candidates. Some campaigns have even told creators their payments needn’t be disclosed publicly
…and it’s even happening in office. The Pentagon secretly hired conservative military influencers into government roles. Three undisclosed hires collectively command more than 1M followers on X
Tech investor Andreessen Horowitz says you actually love social media, and enshittification isn’t real 🤔
X identified 200 accounts posting content opposing US AI data-centre development.
…but it was useless. X says the content got no impressions or engagement, and there’s no evidence they influenced Americans
M. Night Shyamalan has swapped Hollywood for YouTube, offering earnest videos about his career
How do you choose the right influencer in 2026?
Vogue Business shared some key things to consider:
Big follower counts are losing their grip on influencer marketing
Brands are shifting towards smaller creators with deeper trust and cultural credibility.
Micro influencers now outnumber mega influencers 10:1, up from 3:1 five years ago.
Micro influencers also generate 3x the engagement rate of their mega-influencer counterparts.
But 68% of Gen Z say influencers have become more boring than they used to be.
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Also this week:
Meta’s AI ad targeting might be fragmenting your audience. The fix is to build genuinely different messages for distinct buyer personas, not variations.
Google shared tips for improving ROI on YouTube ads with better creative
Reddit statistics in 2026 and tactics to grow your brand
55 BILLION +
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More social stats:
FAKEDIN: Detected inauthentic activity on LinkedIn jumped 46% in H1 2026 versus the previous 6 months
NO THANKS: YouTube says subscribers ignore around 90% of uploads in their own feed
NOTFLIX: Netflix’s overlap with YouTube users has been falling since January 2026. Only 16% of YouTube users also used Netflix in August. But 92% of Netflix users also used YouTube during the month.
BRIT HIT: TikTok’s UK song of the summer is a 2008 UK garage track. Kyla and DJ Paleface’s ‘Do You Mind’ generated 543m UK video views
LIVE AND DIRECT: US shopping sales via livestreams should hit nearly $20B this year, up 35%
Mark Zuckerberg polls so badly in the US that only Putin ranks lower 😬
Ouch! That one will sting a little.
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Also charted this week:
PAYDAY: How much do social platforms actually pay creators in 2026?
INSTA-GROWTH: Instagram growth continues to outpace Facebook across the EU
EURO-SO-BIG: TikTok’s EU user growth, charted
X USERS: X continues to lose EU users. Its latest EU disclosures show its audience declining again after a 15% drop in H2 2025
GEN Z SEARCH: How Gen Zers are searching on video platforms like TikTok and YouTube, not just search engines
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Also spotted this week…
Meta has given up grading engineers on how much AI they use. [Wired $$$]
Mark Zuckerberg reportedly privately told Trump he opposes a national AI regulator in the US. [Business Insider $$$]
Reddit faces antitrust counterclaims over its $60m Google-only crawler deal. [PPC Land]
TikTok backed out of a US Congress meeting citing child-safety lawsuits. [Bloomberg $$$]
TikTok launched a new Shop initiative designed to recognize and support credible health, wellness, and fitness creators who are creating “high-quality, responsible content for shoppers.” [@lindseygamble]
Norway is considering tougher rules for smart glasses and camera-equipped wearables. [TechCrunch]
Ofcom warned platforms not to wait for the UK’s under-16 social media ban, saying existing child-safety duties remain fully enforceable until new restrictions arrive from 2027. [@MattNavarra]
Meta removed scam ads in India… only after being asked twice. [Reuters $$$]
Meta is dumping Google Chat internally because Slack has better AI toys. [Business Insider $$$]
Meta's Oversight Board warned against creating a two-tier system for teen safety, saying geography shouldn’t determine how seriously children are protected. [Oversight Board]
Australia could make social media algorithms optional for users, letting people opt out of recommended content feeds. [The Guardian]
The Elon Musk documentary Musk already hates is almost here. [The Hollywood Reporter]
Here’s a look at how Meta’s $17.1bn child safety settlement finally came together. [New York Times $$$]
Pinterest will unveil new marketing products, best practices and growth strategies on 17 September. [Pinterest Presents]
OnlyFans links might actually make creators more visible on Google. [Mashable]
New features and tests:
Threads has a new splash screen at launch on mobile. [@theahmedghanem]
Threads is set to add support for Meta Accounts. [@lunamarketingservices]
Instagram is testing a new way to jump to the next post after reaching the end of the comments on a post. [@theahmedghanem]
Instagram Edits has had an app store SEO tweak, now being listed as ‘Edits: Video Editor’. [@theahmedghanem]
Instagram Edits has added support for sharing directly to Threads, but only when exporting a carousel. [@theahmedghanem]
Facebook moved the ‘AI Label; button from the main post composer to the ‘Post settings’ menu. [@oncescuradu]
Threads expanded the “Live chat” feature to the AI Threads community. [@oncescuradu]
WhatsApp is testing, on both Business and personal apps, an option to preview and label sticker messages directly from the chat screen. [@theahmedghanem]
WhatsApp is now sending notifications when someone new follows your Broadcast Channel. [@theahmedghanem]
Reddit has launched a new UI for the post composer on iOS. [@oncescuradu]
Meta Accounts Centre now has a ‘Try WhatsApp’ prompt. [@JonahManzano]
Meta unlocked up to 240Hz refresh rates on Quest 3. [Road to VR]
Reddit advertisers can now optimise for people who keep watching videos for 15 seconds or to the end. [Social Media Today]
Early food influencers built audiences around photography, knowledge, restaurant recommendations…
Then Reels and TikTok began to reward faces, personalities, quick cuts, and exaggerated reactions instead.
Now creators say being entertaining on camera can matter more than knowing much about food…
…and at that point… what’s the point? This is a good look at the problem.
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Also worth a read:
The rise and flush of Skibidi Toilet
How Instagram and TikTok algorithms reinvented the food influencer
They’re content creators with thousands of adoring fans – so why do they feel so terrible?
He beat Big Tobacco. Will the same playbook work against Meta and social media?
Sports television is fragmenting. Can YouTube TV keep it together?
How social platforms are turning to AI to work out which users are children
Do influencers owe followers access to the lives they monetise?
Elon Musk has entered his evil floating head era
The UK prime minister’s home briefly became a Booking.com listing 😮
Consumer advocate magazine Which? created a fake Booking.com listing for 10 Downing Street.
14 people tried booking it during a brief 20-minute window.
external payment link also slipped through Booking.com’s fraud checks.
A joke review mentioning Larry the Cat passed moderation too.
Booking.com says most fraudulent listings are removed within 24 hours…
… Except for the funny ones? 🤷
That's everything you need to know this week. ✅
I'm off to check whether the insanely long, insanely complex prompt I wrote to redesign my website has actually worked.
The vibe coding rabbit hole has so far cost me a Claude Max subscription, a ChatGPT Pro subscription, and every spare hour after work for the past few weeks.
I now spend more per month on AI than on heating and hot water.
Pray for me. This could go very wrong, very fast.
Giphy
Goodbye, geeks!
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P.S. This newsletter is edited by Martin SFP Bryant
