• by Colin Kirkland , January 27, 2025

Meta says it is improving its AI assistant’s “memory” and ability to understand individual users by inviting it to remember certain details based on what personal data users allow the AI to access from their activity across the tech giant’s family of apps. 

The feature, which is now rolling out to Meta AI on Facebook, Messenger and WhatsApp for iOS and Android in the U.S. and Canada, “will only remember certain things you tell it in 1:1 conversations,” the company says, adding that users can delete its memories at any time. 

“You can tell Meta AI to remember certain things about you (like that you love to travel and learn new languages), and it can also pick up important details based on context,” Meta explains.  “For example, let’s say you’re hungry for breakfast and ask Meta AI for some ideas. It suggests an omelette or a fancy frittata, and you respond in the chat to let Meta AI know that you’re a vegan. Meta AI can remember that information and use it to inform future recipe recommendations.”

Additionally, Meta says that it will now begin delivering recommendations with its AI assistant, integrating the level of personalization already inherent in the company’s content and ad recommendations algorithms. 

For example, on Instagram, Facebook and Messenger, U.S.-based users can now ask Meta AI to suggest something to do with their family on a particular weekend depending on their recent in-app activity and personal data. 

“Based on the home location you’ve listed as part of your Facebook profile, recent views of reels featuring live performances by various country artists and its memory that you have a partner and two young kids, Meta AI might suggest tickets for that weekend’s country music show at your local arena and reservations at a local brunch spot,” the company explains. 

According to a spokesperson, other information from a user’s profiles such as their age, gender, and interests regarding their activity across Meta apps, like the content and ads they view or interact with “may be used to help personalize your interactions with AI.”