Facebook announced its first virtual assistant on Thursday in the form of "M", which privately interjects in chat threads on Messenger to offer users suggestions related to the conversation.

The feature goes beyond the platform's chat bot technology, offering recommendations for relevant stickers, GIFs, payments, rides and meeting times now appear to each user above the message composer in chat threads. The service launched as a beta test in December but was rolled out to all iOS and Android users in the U.S. as part of an app update.

newsroombanner m
According to Facebook, M relies on AI machine learning techniques and is capable of learning the more it is used. Users can ignore or dismiss suggestions if they're not helpful, and the assistant can easily be muted it in settings. The full list of possible suggestions are as follows.

  • Sending stickers: M shares fun sticker suggestions for your daily life interactions like “Thank you” or “Bye-bye.”
  • Paying or requesting money: M recognizes when people are discussing payments and gives them the option of easily sending or requesting money.
  • Sharing your location: M can suggest an option to share your location during a conversation.
  • Making plans: If people are talking about getting together, M helps coordinating a plan.
  • Starting a poll (in group conversations only): Have a hard time making decisions in a group? M lets you set a poll topic and vote in group conversations.

    Getting a Ride: Talking about going somewhere? M suggests “Get A Ride” and shares an option of Lyft or Uber.

Apple is known to have looked at a similar implementation of Siri in its iMessage platform. A patent published last November for a "virtual assistant in a communication session" depicts a scenario in which users can invoke Siri from within chat threads to get answers to relevant queries, complete scheduling tasks, and more.

siri messages 800x566
A rumor last month claimed that Apple plans to introduce Siri iMessage integration in iOS 11, which is expected to be announced at this year's Worldwide Developers Conference held in June. The feature is said to be part of a major upgrade to Siri's capabilities that would fit out the virtual assistant with powerful contextual learning abilities and iCloud integration.

Top Rated Comments

jase1125 Avatar
91 months ago
Another good reason to uninstall this bloated mess. I don't want sticker recommendations, polls or any other bs recommendations. Technology like this isn't being particularly helpful, it is being obtrusive. As days go buy, I dislike Facebook and relevant apps they own more and more.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Kajje Avatar
91 months ago
M for My God, Facebook and the likes are really monitoring every word I say.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
M.PaulCezanne Avatar
91 months ago
Another good reason to uninstall this bloated mess. I don't want sticker recommendations, polls or any other bs recommendations. Technology like this isn't being particularly helpful, it is being obtrusive. As days go buy, I dislike Facebook and relevant apps they own more and more.
Facebook is a $400B ad delivery network. Everything they do is designed to keep your eyeballs on their pages. Nothing more.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
6836838 Avatar
91 months ago
So so close to removing myself from that social network. Another step closer.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Rogifan Avatar
91 months ago
Do average consumers really want this stuff? it seems like these days we have solutions searching for a problem because companies are obsessed with people thinking they are innovative.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
M.PaulCezanne Avatar
91 months ago
M performs facial recognition on your baby pictures and determines there isn't anything even the most advanced AI can do to fix that kind of ugly.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

reset password request iphone

Warning: Apple Users Targeted in Phishing Attack Involving Rapid Password Reset Requests

Tuesday March 26, 2024 4:34 pm PDT by
Phishing attacks taking advantage of Apple's password reset feature have become increasingly common, according to a report from KrebsOnSecurity. Multiple Apple users have been targeted in an attack that bombards them with an endless stream of notifications or multi-factor authentication (MFA) messages in an attempt to cause panic so they'll respond favorably to social engineering. An...
iPhone Home Screen Gradient Blank Spaces 1

Sources: iOS 18 Lets Apps Be Placed Anywhere on Home Screen Grid

Sunday March 24, 2024 1:33 pm PDT by
iOS 18 will give iPhone users greater control over Home Screen app icon arrangement, according to sources familiar with the matter. While app icons will likely remain locked to an invisible grid system on the Home Screen, to ensure there is some uniformity, our sources say that users will be able to arrange icons more freely on iOS 18. For example, we expect that the update will introduce...
iPad Pro 2024 Landscape Camera Feature

New iPad Pro Again Rumored to Feature Landscape Front-Facing Camera

Monday March 25, 2024 5:43 am PDT by
The next-generation iPad Pro will feature a landscape-oriented front-facing camera for the first time, according to the Apple leaker known as "Instant Digital." Instant Digital reiterated the design change earlier today on Weibo with a simple accompanying 2D image. The post reveals that the entire TrueDepth camera array will move to the right side of the device, while the microphone will...
sonoma desktop wwdc

Apple Releases macOS Sonoma 14.4.1 With Fix for USB Hub Bug

Monday March 25, 2024 10:10 am PDT by
Apple today released macOS Sonoma 14.4.1, a minor update for the macOS Sonoma operating system that launched last September. macOS Sonoma 14.4.1 comes three weeks after macOS Sonoma 14.4. The ‌‌‌‌macOS Sonoma‌‌ 14.4‌.1 update can be downloaded for free on all eligible Macs using the Software Update section of System Settings. There's also a macOS 13.6.6 release for those who...
maxresdefault

Apple Announces WWDC 2024 Event for June 10 to 14

Tuesday March 26, 2024 10:02 am PDT by
Apple today announced that its 35th annual Worldwide Developers Conference is set to take place from Monday, June 10 to Friday, June 14. As with WWDC events since 2020, WWDC 2024 will be an online event that is open to all developers at no cost. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. WWDC 2024 will include online sessions and labs so that developers can learn about new...
Generic iOS 18 Feature Purple

iOS 18 Will Finally Bring This Android Feature to iPhone

Monday March 25, 2024 6:42 am PDT by
iOS 18 will allow iPhone users to place app icons anywhere on the Home Screen grid, according to sources familiar with development of the software update. This basic feature has long been available on Android smartphones. While app icons will likely remain locked to an invisible grid system on the Home Screen, our sources said that users will be able to arrange icons more freely on iOS 18....
apple maps 3d feature

Apple Maps May Gain Custom Routes With iOS 18

Tuesday March 26, 2024 3:10 pm PDT by
Apple may be planning to add support for "custom routes" in Apple Maps in iOS 18, according to code reviewed by MacRumors. Apple Maps does not currently offer a way to input self-selected routes, with Maps users limited to Apple's pre-selected options, but that may change in iOS 18. Apple has pushed an iOS 18 file to its maps backend labeled "CustomRouteCreation." While not much is revealed...
iphone reasons to upgrade

Apple Outlines 'Reasons to Upgrade' Your iPhone on New Website

Monday March 25, 2024 12:53 pm PDT by
Apple today added a "Why Upgrade" section to its website, which is aimed at encouraging customers with older iPhones to upgrade to a newer model. The website allows customers to compare the iPhone 11, 11 Pro, 11 Pro Max, 12, 12 mini, 12 Pro, and 12 Pro Max to the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, or iPhone 15 Pro Max. Each comparison shows what new features someone with an older...