Meta's Muse Image model allows AI generation using public Instagram faces without consent

Meta released its Muse Image model this week with a feature that allows users to tag any adult's public Instagram account and generate AI images incorporating that person's likeness. Instagram account holders are not notified when their likeness is used and must manually opt out if they do not want their images included in AI-generated content.

The opt-out approach has drawn criticism from privacy advocates, talent representatives, and entertainment industry unions who argue Meta should require affirmative consent before using people's likenesses.

Privacy advocates call policy an "egregious invasion"

Public Citizen condemned the feature's default opt-in structure. "Meta has once again chosen the creepiest possible path," said J.B. Branch, director of federal AI governance and technology policy at Public Citizen. "People should not wake up to discover their face has become raw material for someone else's AI experiment."

Talent agency CAA called for Meta to reverse its policy: "No one's name, image, likeness, voice, or creative work should be used by any third party, including AI models, without clear, documented consent. Artists deserve to decide if and how their likeness and work is used, with consent and the ability to set their own terms."

SAG-AFTRA, the largest labor union for actors, recommended its members opt out of the feature and posted instructions on how to disable it.

Meta defends safeguards but signals review

According to Meta, Muse Image "has built-in protections designed to prevent the generation of policy-violating content, including violent, sexual, or defamatory imagery of real people."

Meta has not changed its policy in response to the criticism. Meta Superintelligence Labs chief Alexandr Wang told Axios the company is receiving feedback and "being thoughtful about what the next steps for that product should be."

Technical details

Pricing for Muse Image has not been disclosed. The model is integrated into Meta AI and accessible to users with public Instagram accounts. Meta has not released benchmark scores, parameter count, or other technical specifications for the Muse Image model.

What this means

The controversy highlights the tension between tech companies' preference for opt-out systems that maximize data collection and growing demands for opt-in consent frameworks. With multiple high-profile organizations opposing Meta's approach, the company may face pressure to adopt stricter consent requirements—a shift that could influence how other AI companies handle user likeness rights. The outcome could set precedent for whether people retain default control over their digital likenesses or must actively defend against their use in AI systems.