Social Media Buzz Weekly: Roundup of Social Media Updates
- ClickInsights
- Apr 18
- 7 min read
Welcome to Social Media Buzz Weekly, your weekly bulletin of the latest social media updates. With the social media landscape evolving with each passing day, it can be challenging to keep a tab on the rapid developments. Well, not anymore, as we have taken it upon ourselves to keep you abreast of every happening in the social media space.
So, without any further ado, let’s look at some of the most significant developments from the last week in the world of social media.
1. Advocacy Groups Warn Against Adding Facial Recognition to Meta AI Glasses
A coalition of more than 70 civil liberties, domestic violence, reproductive rights, LGBTQ+, labor and immigrant advocacy organizations have issued a demand that Meta abandon its plans to deploy face recognition in its AI glasses, due to concerns that this could enable stalkers, abusers and federal agents to covertly identify strangers in public.
Meta is looking to advance its AI plans as fast as possible, in order to take on rising competition in the space. Meta has already sought to reduce U.S. regulatory rules on AI development through direct consultation with the White House, with a view to ensuring that the U.S. more broadly remains the leader in the AI race.
2. Mark Zuckerberg Continues His Pursuit of AI Human Clones
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly still continuing to develop an AI clone version of himself, which is being trained on his mannerisms and conversation style.
Supposedly, the bot will eventually be able to interact with Meta employees, giving them more opportunity to connect with the Meta founder. In 2024, Meta launched its AI Studio platform, which enables creators on Instagram to build AI versions of themselves that can interact with fans via DM. Meta has also been working on tools to generate video versions of influencers that can interact in the same way.
3. TikTok Launches Updated Integration for Wix Users
TikTok launched a new integration with website builder platform Wix, which will make it easier for Wix users to link their website data directly into TikTok’s business platform. The update will help to streamline content management and linked ad campaigns.
Available now in the Wix App Market, Wix users can access these new options by downloading the updated TikTok Ads integration. The integration will enable Wix users to improve their ad targeting by simplifying the process of adding the TikTok Pixel into Wix website code. In addition, users can integrate TikTok’s Events API, which will then feed engagement data from the site into TikTok’s system.
4. TikTok Launches Education Program with International Chamber of Commerce
TikTok announced a new education initiative in partnership with the International Chamber of Commerce. The program will provide digital training opportunities for small businesses across select markets in Latin America, Africa and Southeast Asia, according to a press release.
The project will primarily focus on digital commerce and helping SMB owners maximize their promotion and sales opportunities in the app in order to drive more opportunities for a broader range of businesses. TikTok said the training program is designed to expand market access, build long-term resilience and increase revenue opportunities. The project will also help to boost TikTok’s in-app sales push, by showing more business owners how they can use the platform’s shopping functions to drive business.
5. TikTok Publishes First Transparency Report on EU Hate Speech Removal
TikTok published its first transparency report under the EU Code of Conduct on Countering Illegal Hate Speech Online. The new report provides an overview of TikTok’s work to enforce rules against hate and illegal hate speech.
The updated reporting requirement is a new element of the EU Digital Services Act, and was implemented in order to add another level of transparency and accountability to social platform operations in the region. At the same time, the report also provides more insight to the public around hate speech detection and removal efforts within social apps. TikTok reported that 88.7% of content flagged by users is reviewed within 24 hours, while 96.3% of the content that TikTok removed for breaking its rules was taken down before a user report.
6. TikTok Adds New AI Video Generation to Symphony Ad Tool Kit
TikTok is powering up its artificial intelligence-powered generation tools for advertisers by integrating the latest Seedance 2.0 video generation model from parent company ByteDance into its TikTok Symphony ad creation tool kit.
Dreamina Seedance 2.0 is ByteDance’s most advanced video generation system, able to generate realistic-looking, consistent depictions based on text prompts. TikTok said the creative process within Symphony will remain the same, with advertisers able to input text, images, and/or reference clips in order to generate “polished video with audio that’s perfectly in sync.” TikTok added that the model underwent extensive testing to ensure it complied with safety standards and intellectual property restrictions.
7. Instagram Adds Comment Editing
Instagram has added the ability to edit comments, a much-requested feature update that will address a key frustration in the app.
The new edit option will be accessible below published comments in-stream. Tapping on the “Edit” option will open a new pop-up that essentially re-opens a comment for revision. Instagram said in a press release sent to SMT that users will be able to edit their comments within 15 minutes of posting, and there’s no limit on how many times users can edit a comment within that time frame. Instagram added that only the text of comments can be edited. Users won’t be able to update any image elements.
8. Snapchat Makes a Push for Snapcodes as a Marketing Tool
Snapchat is pitching its Snapcodes QR codes as a key consideration for advertisers in order to facilitate more immersive, connective promotions and engage potential customers.
Snapcodes, which have been available as an advertiser option since 2017, enable brands to generate a custom, scannable QR code that Snapchat users can activate via their phone camera in order to glean more information about a brand or product. Depending on the target market, that can be a valuable driver of engagement, and Snapchat is looking to highlight this as a branding option.
9. Snap Partners with Qualcomm on Specs Hardware
Specs, the AR hardware development arm of Snapchat’s parent company Snap, has announced a multi-year strategic partnership with Qualcomm which will see Qualcomm supply hardware to power Specs’ coming AR glasses, which are scheduled to be launched later this year.
Specs will be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR chipsets, lightweight, powerful processors that are among the best options available for powering virtual reality and augmented reality headsets. Snapdragon’s capabilities specifically focus on enabling high-resolution experiences and advanced connectivity at low latency. The technology is also being used to power Meta’s Quest VR headsets and Samsung Galaxy XR units.
10. X Expands AI Translations and Adds In-Stream Photo Editing
X has announced that it’s rolling out its artificial intelligence-powered auto-translate option to all users worldwide, which will enable more users to read posts from other regions. X began integrating its updated AI translation approach in June last year, phasing out Google Translate as its primary provider, and making its own AI system its top translation source for posts.
X has also rolled out a new photo editor within the post composer, which includes new drawing and text overlay functionalities and the capacity to use Grok’s image editing features. This update gives X users more capacity to create and customize their visuals before posting. The tools will also let users blur in order to redact parts of a photo in-stream.
11. X Brings Back DM Voice Replies
X has added voice notes to its updated X Chat messaging system, enabling users to send audio replies to DMs in the app. X users will now be able to use their voice to connect, which can provide an extra dimension to the engagement process.
Twitter added audio messages in DMs back in 2020, so functionally, this is not new. But amid the reconstruction of its DM system, X removed voice replies late last year. This updated version is now aligned with the latest upgrades in the app. X launched its updated X Chat platform and app last month, which represents a complete reconstruction of X’s messaging back-end, in order to build in more security features.
12. X Eliminates Thousands of Accounts in New Bot Purge
X’s Head of Product Nikita Bier has said that the platform has been conducting a major bot purge, identifying and suspending 208 bot accounts per minute. Bier had announced last month that the majority of his team was working on spam mitigation features, including bot detection and removal approaches, in order to reduce the amount of bot activity in the app.
Bier has been warning about this for some time and said the development of artificial intelligence tools will make bots harder and harder to detect. He added that all social platforms need to be working on this in order to get ahead of a massive bot surge that could eventually overwhelm human activity.
13. X Boosts Incentives for Original Content Creators
X has tightened its monetisation rules, reducing earnings for accounts that rely on high-frequency posting and recycled content, according to its head of product Nikita Bier.
Bier said accounts identified as aggregators saw their payouts cut to 60 percent in the latest cycle. He added that another reduction of 20 percent is expected in the next payout round. The move targets profiles that post large volumes of repackaged updates or use repetitive attention hooks. He also flagged accounts that frequently label posts as “BREAKING”, stating that such behaviour would lead to lower payouts if used excessively.
14. LinkedIn Adds Video Playback Speed Controls
LinkedIn has added new playback speed control options for videos posted in the app, with users now able to view in-stream LinkedIn videos at either half speed or double speed.
The update has been rolling out to LinkedIn users over the past few weeks, with the company quietly adding the option to its video functionality. Video consumption has been rising on LinkedIn, with the platform reporting that video watch time rose 36% year-over-year in 2024. LinkedIn also said video content generates 1.4x more engagement than other formats.
Wrapping Up
And that was a wrap of this week’s Social Media Buzz. We’ll be back next week with more news and updates for you from the social media world. Till then, stay tuned!
If you want to read more on the latest developments taking place in the social media space, take a look at ClickInsights’ Social Media Buzz, wherein we bring to you monthly reports on everything going on in social media, ranging from platform updates to policy changes that influence the way we market.
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