Overview
- Instants, which began rolling out Wednesday, May 13, is live inside Instagram DMs and, in many markets, as a free companion app for iOS and Android.
- The feature enforces real-time capture with no filters or uploads, allows a single view per recipient, and leaves unopened photos available for up to 24 hours.
- Meta blocks screenshots and screen recordings and adds an immediate Undo for mistaken sends, with teen accounts covered by sleep mode, time limits, and a parent alert on first download.
- Each sender’s Instants save to a private archive for up to one year, with an option to compile selected shots into a story using a Create summary tool.
- Reporters compare Instants to Snapchat and BeReal as Instagram leans into quick, private exchanges over polished public posts.