Can I Turn Off Meta AI on WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, and Messenger?

If youโ€™ve recently found an unfamiliar blue circle appearing on your favorite social media apps owned by Meta, youโ€™re not alone. It’s a Meta-AI chatbot that summarizes texts, writes captions, creates images based on prompts, and does many other things. While all of this is great, you can disable it if you do not like it.

You will find the Meta AI chatbot on Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, and Messenger to varying degrees, appearing in feeds, chats, searches, and other parts of the platforms.

While the company advertised it as a way to “get things done, learn, create, and connect with the things that matter to you,” a lot of users have found it nothing more than annoying and are wondering if they can disable it or not. Read on to find the answer.

What is Meta AI?

Meta AI is a free virtual assistant where users can interact and ask questions to get an answer in a few seconds. Users can even generate images by giving prompts. It debuted back in 2023, but Meta recently integrated the chatbot across all the social media platforms it owns.

The chatbot works the same across all platforms or apps. As of writing the article, the feature is still being rolled out and may take a few months to reach you. I got the chatbot on one of my Instagram accounts, a WhatsApp account, but had no luck with the Facebook and Messenger apps.

Can You Turn Off Meta AI on WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook?

The Short Answer is No. You cannot opt out of the chatbot entirely since the company has not provided any settings to turn off the Meta AI on these platforms. Previously, there was a block and restrict option, which the company removed later.

While there is no switch to turn it off at all, you can mute the chatbot across all the Meta-owned platforms. Read on to the later part of the article to learn the steps.

Mute Meta AI on Instagram

Muting Meta AI on Instagram is as simple as muting a user on the platform. Follow the below steps to do so:

Step 1: Open the Instagram app and visit the chat section either by tapping the message icon at the top or swiping right.

Step 2: Click on the Meta AI icon at the top to open the chatbot window.

Step 3: Tap the ‘i’ icon, then tap the Mute button.

Mute Meta AI on Instagram

Step 4: Turn on the toggle for Mute messages.

Step 5: From the available options on the screen, choose Until I change it.

Mute Meta AI on Instagram

Mute Meta AI on WhatsApp

On WhatsApp, the mute button is located under the Notifications option on the Meta AI’s profile. Here’s how you can enable it.

Step 1: Open the WhatsApp app and open the Meta AI chat.

Step 2: Click on its name at the top.

Step 3: Next, choose Notifications under the View contact card section.

Step 4: Enable the toggle for Mute messages.

Mute Meta AI on WhatsApp

Step 5: Finally, select Always and tap OK.

Mute Meta AI on Facebook

To mute the Meta AI chatbot on Facebook app, follow the below mentioned steps:

Step 1: Open the Facebook app and head over to the Meta AI chatbot.

Mute Meta AI on Facebook

Step 2: Click on the ‘i’ icon at the top-right corner.

Step 3: Select Mute button.

Step 4: On the next screen, select Until I change and tap OK.

Mute Meta AI on Messenger

Even though Facebook Messenger has the least integration of Meta AI chatbot, if you want to mute it, follow the below steps to do so:

Step 1: Open the Messenger app and click on the Meta AI tab from the bottom.

Step 2: Click on the ‘i’ icon at the top-right corner.

Step 3: Next, tap Mute button.

Step 4: Select the checkbox for Until I change it then tap OK.

Wrapping Up

Meta has only integrated the AI chatbot in the main applications and not in the web or lite apps, which are available for Android phones. Hence, if you are an Android user, just install Facebook Lite or Instagram Lite and enjoy.

But since these Lite apps are not available for iPhone users, you need to create a shortcut for the web version using the Safari browser. To do so, open the Safari app and head over to either Facebook or Instagram > Log in to your account using the credentials > Tap the share button at the bottom and choose Add to Home Screen to add it.

The web and lite versions of Facebook or Instagram work similar to the main mobile app, except they are slightly slower and have some features that are missing compared to the main app.

If you have any questions related to the article, do let us know in the comments section below.

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AUTHOR.

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Harsh Saxena

Hi! I am Harsh and I write about technology on different websites. I frequently write about these topics and cover them. I am available on Twitter at @Harsh4saxena or Email me at harsh4saxena@gmail.com to send in your feedback and tips. Worked at GadgetsToUse, BrowserToUse, DailyTechByte, FreshFounder, and with many other websites as an author and researcher.

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