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Meta Pulls Instagram’s Muse Image After Hollywood Pushback

Talent agencies and SAG‑AFTRA forced the shutdown by objecting to the feature’s default use of public photos, leaving uncertainty about data already accessed.

Overview

  • Meta said the Muse Image feature is no longer available on Instagram after intense criticism from the entertainment industry and privacy advocates.
  • Muse allowed users to generate images using others’ publicly posted photos as templates and included public accounts by default unless people dug into settings to opt out.
  • Creative Artists Agency and the actors’ union SAG‑AFTRA publicly demanded limits on the tool and helped prompt Meta’s rapid removal of the feature.
  • Privacy and safety experts warned Muse could enable deepfakes, pornographic misuse, and the harvesting of images during the short time it was live.
  • Key questions remain about whether Meta retained data captured while Muse was live, how effective the opt‑out is, and how future launches will address likeness and consent disputes.