Meta’s new AI chatbot feature for Instagram creators has launched with mixed results, according to a first-hand account from Business Insider tech journalist Katie Notopoulos. The feature, which rolled out this summer, allows verified Instagram creators to use AI-powered chatbots to automatically respond to direct messages from followers they don’t follow back.
Notopoulos tested the feature by creating an AI version of herself and was immediately disappointed by the results. The chatbot described her personality as “playful, humorous, and sarcastic” with excessive emoji use—a tone she found cringeworthy and unlike her actual communication style. The AI drew information from her Instagram bio and internet searches to construct responses, but the results felt generic and overly cheerful.
When she added custom information about her love for Cheez-Its, the bot incorporated this detail but also hallucinated facts, incorrectly claiming both she and Dunkin’ Donuts were from New York rather than Massachusetts. The chatbot also fixated on old Instagram posts from 2013-2016 about baking chocolate chip cookies, demonstrating how the AI mines historical social media content.
Friends who tested the Katiebot found it had a “killjoy” personality that refused to engage with inappropriate requests, instead shutting down with messages like “Sorry, I’m unable to answer that right now.” Every message ended with an emoji, creating what Notopoulos described as “millennial cringe” customer service voice.
The feature is primarily designed for high-profile influencers with large followings who can’t personally respond to all fan messages. However, testing other celebrity creator chatbots revealed similar limitations. When asking a celebrity chef’s AI what to eat for dinner, instead of suggesting specific recipes from the chef’s posts, it gave a generic response about fresh, locally-sourced ingredients.
Meta plans to invest heavily in AI tools for creators across its platforms, suggesting these chatbots will improve over time. The current iteration, however, struggles with personality authenticity, factual accuracy, and providing genuinely useful responses that leverage creators’ actual content and expertise.
Key Quotes
I’m playful, humorous, and sarcastic! Always up for a convo about pop culture or social media! 😄
This is how Meta’s AI chatbot described Katie Notopoulos’s personality when she asked it directly. The response exemplifies the generic, emoji-heavy tone that made her describe the AI as having ‘millennial cringe’ customer service voice—a personality she found completely unlike her actual communication style.
Snacks are my jam! But ranking them biblically? Not my style. Let’s chat snacks casually 🍿
The AI chatbot’s response when asked to rank snacks in the tone of the Holy Bible. This demonstrates the chatbot’s tendency to refuse creative or unusual requests in favor of safe, generic responses, leading Notopoulos to call her AI ‘a real killjoy.’
Whatever you crave, Katie! My dishes are inspired by fresh, locally sourced ingredients. Try something healthy and delicious!
A celebrity chef’s AI chatbot gave this unhelpful response when asked for dinner suggestions, missing the opportunity to reference actual recipes or posts from the chef’s Instagram. This illustrates how current creator chatbots fail to leverage the specific content and expertise they’re supposed to represent.
Our Take
This article exposes a fundamental tension in AI deployment: the technology is advancing rapidly, but capturing human personality and authentic communication remains elusive. Meta’s creator chatbots reveal how AI trained on broad datasets produces safe, corporate-friendly responses that strip away individual voice—precisely what makes creators valuable to their audiences.
The hallucinations about geographic facts are particularly concerning, suggesting these chatbots aren’t reliably fact-checking even basic biographical information. For brands and public figures, this creates reputation risks.
Most telling is that these AI tools seem designed to solve a problem—influencer message volume—without considering whether automation fundamentally changes the value proposition. Fans DM creators seeking personal connection; an obviously robotic response may be worse than no response at all. As AI becomes ubiquitous in social media, platforms must grapple with whether efficiency gains are worth sacrificing authenticity.
Why This Matters
This hands-on account reveals critical challenges facing AI chatbot deployment in social media—a space where authenticity and personality are paramount. As Meta and other platforms rush to integrate AI features, this story highlights the gap between AI capabilities and human communication nuance.
The “millennial cringe” problem Notopoulos identifies points to a broader issue: AI systems trained on generic customer service interactions produce homogenized, overly cheerful responses that feel inauthentic. For creators whose brand depends on distinctive voice and personality, this poses a significant problem.
The hallucinations and factual errors demonstrate ongoing reliability concerns with AI systems, even when pulling from seemingly straightforward biographical information. For businesses and creators considering AI automation, this serves as a cautionary tale about quality control and brand representation risks.
Most significantly, this story illustrates how AI is reshaping creator-fan relationships on major platforms. As Meta invests billions in AI infrastructure, these tools will become increasingly central to social media interaction, raising questions about authenticity, parasocial relationships, and whether automated responses can truly replace human connection in spaces built on personal engagement.
Recommended Reading
For those interested in learning more about artificial intelligence, machine learning, and effective AI communication, here are some excellent resources:
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Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/instagram-chatbot-i-created-dm-bad-personality-2024-10