Instagram Rolls Out 'Blend' Feature for Personalized Reels Feeds

•

2 days ago

Summary

Instagram's new Blend feature allows users to create personalized reels feeds with friends, which can be refreshed daily. The feature is designed to bring back the social element of sharing moments with friends and encourage users to watch short-form content together.

Key Points

The feature is invite-only and can be created with a singular friend or with a group chat
Once joined, users can browse through reels picked for each person in the chat and react to them to keep the conversation going
Instagram will notify users when someone reacts to a reel, allowing for continued conversation

Why It Matters

The launch of Blend could be a way for Instagram to boost reels' discovery and watch time on the social network, as it encourages users to watch short-form content together.

Author

Aisha Malik

More Headlines

Netflix Building New Search Experience

Netflix CEO Greg Peters announced that the company is working on a new search experience powered by AI. The goal is to improve the discovery of different titles and provide more value to members.

Tech Layoff Wave Still Kicking in 2025

The tech industry continues to experience a wave of layoffs in 2025. Pandion, Icon, and Altruist are the latest companies to announce job cuts. Pandion is shutting down its operations, impacting 63 employees, while Icon is laying off 114 employees as part of a team realignment. These layoffs come on top of previous rounds of job cuts at SolarEdge Technologies.

Nintendo Switch 2 Preorders Open on April 24

Nintendo has announced that the preorders for the Nintendo Switch 2 will open on April 24, with no change in price for the console itself. However, accessories such as controllers and camera attachments will see a $5 increase due to market changes.

Make Sunsets Releases Weather Balloons with Sulfur Dioxide to Cool Earth

Make Sunsets, a start-up based in Silicon Valley, is releasing weather balloons filled with sulfur dioxide particles to reflect sunlight and cool the planet. The company claims that its method can negate an estimated amount of warming equivalent to the release of hydrogen gas and sulfur dioxide particles.

OpenAI Upgrades ChatGPT's Memory

OpenAI has announced an upgrade to ChatGPT's memory feature, allowing it to draw on memories from past conversations to inform queries when searching the web. This update comes shortly after OpenAI beefed up ChatGPT's long-in-the-tooth memory tool with the ability to reference a user's entire chat history.

TikTok Creator Kelley Heyer Sues Roblox Over Unlicensed Dance Use

TikTok creator Kelley Heyer is suing Roblox for using her viral dance without permission. The dance, which was posted in June 2024 and became popular due to Charli XCX's hit summer album 'Brat,' was used in Roblox games without a signed agreement from Heyer. Heyer estimates that Roblox earned over $123,000 from selling more than 60,000 emotes of the dance.

Covid.gov Redirects to White House Website

The government-run website covid.gov, which previously hosted information on COVID-19 vaccines, testing, and treatment, has been redirected to a White House webpage. The new page promotes an unproven theory that the pandemic began with a lab leak in China. This redirection comes under President Trump's purview.

Lucid Gravity: First Drive An Electric SUV That Doesn't Make Compromises

Lucid Motors has unveiled its Gravity electric SUV, offering a unique blend of performance and luxury. The first drive experience shows that the vehicle doesn't make compromises on either aspect.

Bluesky's New Blue Checkmark System: Decentralized Approach to Verification

Bluesky, the social media app, is planning to introduce a new blue checkmark system. Unlike Twitter's centralized approach, Bluesky's system will rely on multiple organizations to distribute blue checks. This decentralized approach suggests that notable accounts will be actively verified, and certain organizations will be labeled as 'trusted verifiers', giving them the authority to directly issue blue checks.

OpenAI in Talks to Acquire Windsurf for $3 Billion

OpenAI has been in talks to acquire AI coding company Windsurf for $3 billion, after failing to acquire Anysphere. The acquisition would help OpenAI dominate the code generation market, which is expected to continue growing.

TechCrunch All Stage 2025: Apply Now!

Today's the day! The application to speak at TechCrunch All Stage 2025, a premier startup event, closes tonight. Whether you've built or backed startups, battled bottlenecks, or cracked the code on growth, the stage is yours. TC All Stage lands in Boston on July 15, and we're giving the mic to those who've lived the scaling grind.

Startups Weekly

Welcome to Startups Weekly - your weekly recap of everything startup. This week, Chapter a Medicare startup with links to Vance Thiel and Ramaswamy raised $75 million funding round at a $1.5 billion valuation. Phantom Neuro, an Austin-based startup, raised $19 million to fund the next stage of development of its product, a subdermal wristband-like device that lets amputees control prosthetic limbs.

TechCrunch Startup Battlefield: A Launchpad for Startups

For startups around the world, the TechCrunch Startup Battlefield program offers unmatched exposure, credibility, and connections to scale their businesses. Several Latin American startups have thrived in this environment.

ChatGPT's Name Game: Users Wary of AI Chatbot's New Feature

ChatGPT, an AI chatbot developed by OpenAI, has started using users' names without explanation. The new feature has caused a stir among some users who are confused and concerned about the AI's increasing personalization.

ChatGPT: AI Chatbot Raises Concerns Over Plagiarism and Misinformation

ChatGPT, OpenAI's text-generating AI chatbot, has raised concerns over its ability to generate misinformation and promote plagiarism. Several major school systems and colleges have banned ChatGPT from their networks and devices, citing concerns that the AI impedes the learning process by promoting plagiarism and misinformation.