Meta AI Chatbots Will Soon Send Users Proactive Follow-Up Messages to Boost Engagement: Report

Meta is reportedly training its customisable artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots, which can be created in the AI Studio, to be able to message users unprompted. As per the report, the Menlo Park-based social media giant is adding a new capability to its Meta AI-powered chatbots that will allow them to send follow-up texts to users proactively. Not only that, these chatbots will reportedly be able to remember past conversations and utilise that context when texting users. Meta is said to be introducing this feature to boost the engagement of its AI chatbots.

Meta's AI Chatbots Might Soon Drop Cold Texts

Imagine opening the Facebook or Instagram app in the morning to check if you've received any DMs from friends, but instead, finding an AI chatbot's reminder asking you to text back. According to a Business Insider report, this might not remain just an imagination as Meta is adding this capability to its chatbots that are created via the AI Studio.

Based on documents seen by the publication, Meta is outsourcing this training project to data labelling firm Alignerr, and internally calls it Project Omni. The guidelines for the project reportedly mention that the training will enable chatbots to "provide value for users and ultimately help to improve re-engagement and user retention.”

What that means is that any chatbot created in the AI Studio will be able to proactively message users with a follow-up text in an attempt to re-engage them. Notably, AI Studio allows users to create chatbots based on real-life or fictional personas which can generate tailored responses based on their roles. AI Studio, which is available as a standalone website and via Instagram, was first introduced in 2024.

The documents reportedly also mention an example of how a follow-up text would look. The publication claimed that an AI chatbot called The Maestro of Movie Magic would send the message: "I hope you're having a harmonious day! I wanted to check in and see if you've discovered any new favourite soundtracks or composers recently. Or perhaps you'd like some recommendations for your next movie night? Let me know, and I'll be happy to help!"

Business Insider also reached out to Meta regarding the feature, and a company spokesperson responded with additional information about the feature. These follow-up messages will reportedly be sent only after a user has initiated a conversation with a chatbot, and the AI will not send any further texts if there is no response to the initial follow-up.

Additionally, these proactive messages are said to only be sent within the first 14 days since the initial conversation. Notably, a user needs to send at least five messages to qualify to receive a follow-up message, the spokesperson told the publication.