If your Instagram recommendations have been out of date, soon you’ll have a way to make the app’s algorithm forget everything it thinks it knows about you. Meta is testing a new feature that will allow users to reset the algorithmic suggestions that power the app’s feed, Reels and Explore categories.
The company described the feature as “experimental,” but said the update “will roll out globally soon.” With the change, users will be able to “reset suggested content” in the content preferences section of Instagram’s settings. This will allow you, according to Meta, to “restart” and provide the opportunity to re-tune the application’s suggestions.
But while this may help you find an Instagram feed that better reflects your current interests, Meta notes that doing this type of “reset” doesn’t remove any of your data from the app or change how the company serves you ads. (Instagram has a requirement to generate likes for ads.)
Meta is making the change as part of its plan to bring new security features to teens, though the feature will be available to all users. “We want to give young people new ways to shape their Instagram experience, so they can continue to reflect their interests and passions as they develop,” the company wrote in a blog post. The ministry has come under fire for its recommendations, which EU officials have suggested could encourage “addictive behavior.”
The company notes that it has other youth-specific features aimed at preventing its younger users from seeing inappropriate content. It recently launched “,” which has strong privacy settings, and is trying to keep certain types of dangerous content out of its feed.
