In its quest to attract new customers and secure new generations, Facebook is testing a new feature that would allow Instagram users to show what they are doing in their day to day. The inspiration has been taken from another app that is hitting it among young people.
Instagram is testing a new feature called “Candid Challenges,” which bears a strong resemblance to BeReal, a photo-sharing app popular with Gen Z.
The feature, which hasn’t been released yet, was discovered by Alessandro Paluzzi, a developer known for reverse-engineering apps and finding early versions of upcoming updates.
According to Paluzzi, Instagram users who participate in the Candid Challenges will see a notification at a different time each day to take a photo of their surroundings.Upon receiving the notification, Instagram’s camera will also open with the front and rear cameras, giving users a two-minute window to take a photo . Content shared through challenges will appear in the Stories tray.
As we said before, if this sounds familiar to you, it’s because the functionality sounds almost identical to BeReal, a selfie app marketed as a more honest and authentic alternative to the market-leading social media platforms (Instagram, TikTok, etc.).
The app , which originally launched in 2019, also asks users to take a photo using their phone’s front and rear cameras at a random time each day. Daily reminders also expire after two minutes, after which users can see all the photos shared by their friends that day.
It is not yet clear if or when Instagram intends to launch this feature. An Instagram spokesperson described the feature as an ” internal prototype ” that is ” not being tested externally “.But the fact that the company is testing the functionality suggests that it is at least considering replicating the app within its own service.
Mark Zuckerberg has said that the future of Meta lies in attracting young adults, who are spending more and more time on platforms other than Meta. And while TikTok is currently its main competitor, the company is known for keeping a close eye on its rivals and copying its rivals.
