Meta Connect started with the Quest 3 announcement but that’s not the only big news. The metaverse company is also a leader in AI and has released several valuable models to the open-source community. Today, Meta announced its generative AI is coming soon to its social media apps, and it looks both fun and useful.
Meta AI for text
When CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced Meta AI for social media, it seemed interesting. When one of the custom AIs looked like Snoop Dogg wearing Dungeons and Dragons gear, there was a gasp from the live audience, followed by whoops of joy and applause.
The Snoop Dogg avatar looks realistic and acts as the Dungeon Master, spinning a story in response to your chats. Zuckerberg demoed the interaction at the event, starting with the Dungeon Master saying, “Let’s get medieval, player.”
Zuck’s RPG crew is confronted with “an ancient guardian armed with a rusted axe,” and he cheerfully responds with a prompt to “summon my steed.” The AI describes a loyal, galloping horse, adding the detail that its hooves echoed off stone walls, while the ancient guardian, wary of the horse, spoke instead of attacking.
It’s the sort of ChatGPT text responses with seeming creativity we’ve seen before, but it’s coming to Meta apps like Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp.
Meta announced a host of other AIs based on celebrities like NFL star Tom Brady, media personality Paris Hilton, and YouTuber Mr. Beast. Each specializes in a particular area and can help with chats about sports, recipes, crafting, and more. AI Studio, coming later, will let anyone make their own AI, with custom avatars and knowledge.
Meta AI has access to real-time information via Microsoft Bing, so it can inform you about current events. It should be quite helpful and entertaining.
AI is also coming to VR over time, so AI-powered avatars will appear in Horizon Worlds to interact with people wearing the new Quest 3, Quest 2, and Quest Pro VR headsets.
The new Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses are also getting access to Meta AI, so you can chat with the glasses and get help. Visual search is coming next year and uses built-in cameras to see where you’re looking and answer questions about your location or the object in view.
Meta Emu for images
Meta’s AI for generative images, Emu (expressive media universe), is coming to social media also. In the coming months, you’ll be able to use Emu in Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp by calling on Meta AI in any chat.
The format will look familiar to anyone who’s used Midjourney to create AI images. Just type “@Meta AI /imagine” then enter a prompt. Within seconds, Emu will respond with a nice rendering of what you asked for.
Meta’s demonstration of Emu imagery was impressive, particularly with the remarkable generation speed. Zuckerberg said most images take just five seconds. That’s incredible considering other AI generators spend a minute and sometimes much longer before showing any results.
