Overview
- Instagram began rolling out the Instants app on Thursday in Italy and Spain on iOS and Android, according to company-confirmed reports.
- Instants requires in-app capture with a single tap, blocks camera-roll uploads and edits, allows optional text, and limits each photo to one view before it disappears within 24 hours.
- Users can send Instants to mutual followers or a Close Friends list that matches the one in Instagram, and they can post or view these messages either in the new app or inside Instagram.
- Meta calls the release a test and has not shared plans or timing for a U.S. or wider global launch.
- The app spins out Instagram’s earlier “Shots” feature and borrows the real-time, ephemeral playbook seen in Snapchat, BeReal, and Locket.