Meta's AI image creator can use public Instagram profiles: Here's why leaders should care

A new AI image tool from Meta has done something few product launches manage. It has shifted the conversation from creativity to consent.

The company this week unveiled Muse Image, an AI-powered image generation tool developed by Superintelligence Labs. On the surface, it is another addition to the growing list of generative AI products. Look a little closer, however, and one feature is drawing attention from privacy advocates. Users can generate AI images using another person's public Instagram profile by mentioning their username.

For business leaders, the development is more than another social media update. It highlights how quickly AI capabilities are expanding beyond organisational boundaries, creating fresh questions around employee privacy, digital identity and governance.

What is Muse Image?

According to Meta, Muse Image is available through the Meta AI app, WhatsApp and Instagram Stories.

The company says the tool uses advanced reasoning to understand complex prompts while blending multiple photos into AI-generated visuals that users can download and share.

The feature attracting the most scrutiny is the ability to include another person's public Instagram profile in an AI-generated image.

According to Meta, users can @ mention a public Instagram account inside the Meta AI app, allowing Muse Image to use publicly available photos from that account to generate a new image.

Meta explains the feature by stating: "Tagging a username lets Meta AI use public photos to build a visual that's ready to post."

Unless users actively change their settings, public Instagram profiles remain eligible for this functionality.

Why privacy concerns surfaced so quickly

It did not take long for critics to respond.

According to reporting by Mashable, privacy advocates and consumer groups have criticised the feature for relying on an opt-out approach rather than asking users for explicit permission before their public photos become available for AI image generation.

Public Citizen, a non-profit consumer advocacy organisation, described the feature as "an egregious invasion of user privacy."

Its Director of Federal AI Governance and Technology Policy, J.B. Branch, said: "People should not wake up to discover their face has become raw material for someone else's AI experiment."

Branch also criticised Meta's decision to make the feature available by default for eligible public accounts while placing the opt-out option within account settings.

Why business leaders should pay attention

This is not simply a consumer technology story.

For employers, the launch reflects how AI tools are beginning to use publicly available personal content in ways many users may not anticipate.

Employees increasingly maintain professional identities on platforms such as Instagram, LinkedIn and other social networks. Even when those accounts sit outside company systems, developments like Muse Image highlight how publicly available digital content can be reused by AI applications.

For organisations building AI governance frameworks, the announcement reinforces several considerations.

These include:

• Employee awareness of public digital footprints
• Privacy expectations in an AI-driven environment
• Digital identity and reputation management
• AI governance and responsible technology policies
• Internal guidance around the use of generative AI tools

As AI capabilities continue to evolve, governance conversations are moving beyond enterprise software into the consumer platforms employees use every day.

Public profile or private account? The difference matters

According to Meta, the feature works only with public Instagram accounts.

Users with private profiles are protected because Muse Image cannot access content from accounts that are not publicly visible.

If someone attempts to use a private Instagram account with Muse Image, the tool informs them it cannot generate images using that profile.

Public accounts operate differently.

According to Meta, people with public Instagram profiles who do not want their content used by Muse Image must manually update their settings.

The company says users can disable the feature through Instagram's Sharing and Reuse settings by turning off permissions allowing Meta's AI features to reuse both Posts and Reels.

AI governance is becoming a leadership conversation

Generative AI has already transformed how organisations write, code, analyse data and create content.

Muse Image demonstrates another shift. AI is increasingly interacting with publicly available personal information rather than content created solely within enterprise environments.

For business leaders, this is a reminder that AI governance extends beyond choosing workplace tools. It also involves helping employees understand how public digital content may be used by rapidly evolving AI systems, even outside the workplace.

As AI platforms continue introducing new capabilities, organisations may find themselves discussing not only productivity and innovation, but also privacy, consent and digital trust.