Quick Info
  • Currently, Meta does not allow turning off its AI chatbot in applications like Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp.
  • However, you can mute the AI in these applications on both iOS and Android and even delete the Meta AI chat thread.
  • Other workarounds involve using web apps of Meta-owned applications and using the stripped-down version of Facebook.

Mute Meta AI on Instagram

  1. Open the Instagram app, and then swipe right to go to the chat page.
  2. Tap on the search bar at the top.
  3. Tap on the Meta AI icon in the search bar.
  1. The chat with Meta AI will open. Tap on the 'i' icon at the top right.
  2. Then, tap on the 'Mute' option.
  1. Next, tap on the 'Mute Messages' toggle.
  2. Select 'Until I change it' from the popup to mute the chatbot indefinitely.

Mute Meta AI on Facebook

Muting Meta AI on Facebook is very similar to how you do it on Instagram.

  1. Open the Facebook app on your phone and look for the search icon at the top. It may appear as the Meta AI icon, which appears in the form of a blue circle.
  2. Tapping on the circle will show you the search bar. Tap on the arrow on the right to go to the Meta AI chat.
  3. You will find an 'i' icon on the top right. Tap on it and then on the 'Mute' option on the next page.
  4. You can mute the AI chatbot for different periods. To do so indefinitely, tap on the 'Until I change it' option.

Mute Meta AI on WhatsApp

Meta AI is also available on WhatsApp for Android and iOS.

  1. To mute it, open WhatsApp and tap on the Meta AI icon.
  2. This will open the Meta AI chat. Tap on the Meta AI label at the top to go to the Meta AI page.
  1. On the Meta AI page, tap on 'Notifications'.
  2. Then, on the Notifications page, tap on the toggle next to the 'Mute Notifications' option.
  1. A pop-up will appear letting you choose the period for which you want to mute notifications. Tap on 'Always'.
  2. You can also delete the Meta AI chat thread, which will appear like other chats if you've interacted with the chatbot previously. Press and hold on the chat to select it and then tap on the 'Trash' icon at the top.

Mute Meta AI on Messenger

  1. When you open Messenger, you will find the Meta AI icon at the bottom of the app. To mute it, tap on it and the Meta AI chat will open.
  2. Tap on the Meta AI label at the top to open the Meta AI page.
  1. Next, tap on the 'Mute' button.
  2. You will be able to choose the period for which you want to mute the AI chatbot. Tap on the 'Until I change it' option and then tap on OK.

Use web apps on Android

Meta AI is available on regular Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp apps but not on the web apps for these products. So, you can download and install Facebook Lite and Instagram Lite from the Play Store which are completely free of Meta AI integration.

Create web app shortcut on iOS

iOS users will need to create a shortcut for these web apps with Safari since the Facebook Lite and Instagram Lite apps are not available in the App Store.

  1. Open Safari and navigate to Instagram or Facebook.
  2. Sign in to your account and tap on the 'Share' icon.
  3. Then tap on the 'Add to Home Screen' option from the share sheet.
  1. Add a name for the shortcut and tap on 'Add' on the top-right.
  2. Now you can simply access Facebook or Instagram using this shortcut without having to worry about Meta AI.

Things to Know:

  • This will install the website as a PWA (Progressive Web App).
  • PWA has lesser functionality than a full-fledged app but more features than using the website. For instance, you can even enable notifications for Instagram after installing it as a PWA.

Use the basic version of Facebook

Like the lite version of the Facebook app, Meta AI is not present on the basic version of its website. You can access it by going to mbasic.facebook.com. On regular apps and websites, you can also choose to ignore the chatbot as there is no compulsion to use it.