According to the company, this change will take effect on December 16, with in-app notifications and emails being sent to users starting October 7 to inform them of the update. Meta clarified that the rollout will cover most regions worldwide, excluding the European Union and South Korea in the initial phase.
Meta gave an example: if a user talks with an AI chatbot about a hobby like hiking, the platform might begin showing ads for hiking shoes, suggestions for related groups, or even posts from friends about hiking trails.
Kristi Harris, Meta’s Privacy Policy Director, told Reuters: “People’s conversations will simply be another input that helps personalize the content and ads they see on their feeds.”
While ad targeting based on online user activity is not new, incorporating personal chatbot conversations into the process marks a controversial shift, as direct conversations have not typically been used for ad targeting before.
According to a Wall Street Journal report, the new feature will not offer an opt-out option, meaning that anyone who chats with Meta’s AI bots will have their data automatically used for advertising purposes.
However, Meta stressed that its bots will not collect sensitive data such as religious beliefs, sexual orientation, political views, health information, racial or philosophical background, or union membership. The company also advised users to avoid sharing such sensitive information in chatbot conversations.
Meta argues that this move enhances its ability to personalize user experiences, but at the same time, it raises renewed privacy concerns and serves as a reminder that AI chatbots are not “friends,” as some might think, but data-driven tools.