👻 Instagram is building its own Snapchat-style app

Instagram is internally testing a standalone app for disappearing photos called Instants. Meta confirmed it’s only an internal prototype for now, with no public testing.

The concept is familiar. Users send a photo, it can be opened once, then disappears, or expires within 24 hours. Photos can’t be edited and can only be sent to people who mutually follow each other.

This isn’t coming out of nowhere. Instants was previously tested inside the main Instagram app under the name Shots. Vanishing messages and similar features already exist, but this would separate the behavior into a dedicated app.

It fits a broader shift inside Instagram. Public feeds became entertainment and ads, while real sharing moved into DMs. Meta seems to think private, low-pressure communication is where growth is again.

Everything cycles. Even social media from 2016.

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