• by Colin Kirkland , June 13, 2024

Earlier this month, Instagram was found to be testing unskippable ads in user feeds for the first time. Now, new reports show the company is furthering its interest in more disruptive advertising formats as it tests ads displayed in users’ Stories.

According to screenshots shared by 404 Media, Instagram is testing ads that pop up on users’ friends' Stories, the short-form image and video feature located at the top of the platform’s main feed.

So far, the Story ads being shared are for “Super Rumble,” a game for Meta’s virtual-reality gaming app Horizon Worlds. The ads arise unannounced from the bottom of friends' Stories, with a small CTA button to guide users through, “which can create the somewhat surreal experience of being advertised a virtual reality game on friends' posts where they are talking about political issues or world events,” reports 404 Media.

Another example shared by social media expert Matt Navarra shows the promotions being displayed above the Stories frame, with a link directing users to “Go to World.”

Although invasive ad types like this could provide Meta with increased revenue, users have been's’s recent unskippable “ad breaks,” users replied to posts on X and Reddit, stating that if these ad types were to be officially introduced, they would swear off the platform permanently because of the unnecessary disruption in user flow and concerns over a potential paid subscription tier for the app.

Instagram has not yet commented on the ongoing advertising tests.