If you’ve ever wondered whether you like the photo-collage suggestions made by the Meta AI assistant in the Facebook feed, there’s more going on behind the scenes than meets the eye. The Facebook parent company, Meta Platforms, is rolling out a new AI-powered collage and photo-editing tool for users in the United States and Canada.
The feature not only helps generate “fun collages and edits” from the photos on your phone but is also designed to contribute to training Meta’s AI models.
According to Meta, the new tool is called “Camera Roll Sharing Suggestions”. The process works by scanning a user’s camera roll to identify high-quality or meaningful photos and videos, uploading selected content to the cloud for processing, and then using AI to suggest outputs like collages, event-based edits (birthdays, trips), stylised images or recap videos. These suggestions appear automatically in Stories or the Feed once the user opts in.
Meta has stated:
“We don’t use media from your camera roll to improve AI at Meta, unless you choose to edit this media with our AI tools, or share.”
In simple terms, Meta claims the images remain private unless you take an additional step — like editing or sharing them — at which point those images may be incorporated in datasets that help train its AI systems.
Despite Meta’s assurances, privacy advocates point out that the feature “uploads the content to the cloud on an ongoing basis” once a user opt-ins, which means unpublished, unshared photos are still being processed.
There is concern because even if the data isn't used immediately for AI training, the images still reside on Meta’s servers and could be used or accessed under later consent or policy changes. In some cases users reported the feature being enabled without explicit activation, raising further questions about opt-in transparency.
The new collage and editing AI feature requires users in the U.S. and Canada to opt in. Once enabled, the tool scans your device’s camera roll, uploads selected media to Meta’s cloud for processing, and then suggests creative outputs. The suggestions are visible only to the user unless shared.
To manage or disable the feature, users should:
Go to Facebook app → Profile picture → Settings & Privacy → Settings → Preferences → Camera Roll Sharing Suggestions.
In that section, there are two toggles: one controls whether Facebook can suggest content from your camera roll, the other controls the “cloud processing” access. If you’re uncomfortable with the AI training aspect, you may toggle both off or restrict camera-roll access in your device’s operating system settings.
Meta’s push into this camera-roll-based AI feature is part of a broader move to integrate generative and assistive AI into its social platforms. By analysing unseen images and video, Meta aims to surface hidden gems and boost user engagement — but it also gains access to a large data source for refining its AI models.
As competition intensifies in the AI space, gaining access to diverse and private user-generated media becomes a significant advantage — and this feature helps Meta build that advantage while wrapping it in a creative, user-centric framing (collages, edits, fun content).
Meta’s new “Camera Roll Sharing Suggestions” feature on Facebook offers a compelling mix of creative convenience and underlying strategic data gathering. On one hand, users get AI-powered collage suggestions and edits from forgotten photos; on the other, the feature opens the door to letting Meta access and potentially train its models using personal media — depending on user actions.
For users who value both creativity and privacy, this may be a worthwhile trade-off — but the key is transparency and control. Ensuring you understand the toggles, permissions and long-term implications of allowing your camera roll into the AI feed is critical. In the evolving social-AI landscape, features like this mark a turning point where personal media isn't just for sharing — it could power the very intelligence behind the platforms.