Why Has Meta Barred Apple Intelligence Features In Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Threads On iOS?

Meta has reportedly barred the use of Apple Intelligence features for four of its apps. Originally available on Meta-owned Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Threads, Genmoji and Writing Tools appear to have been restricted for some users.

It seems that Meta may have started removing Apple Intelligence features as early as December 2024, which caused confusion among many iPhone users who wanted to use the features on Meta apps. Although most apps come with built-in support for Apple Intelligence features, developers can choose not to use them, and it seems Meta has done so.

In contrast, Apple Intelligence Writing Tools seem to be still available on X (formerly Twitter), Bluesky, and Signal.

Users of Apple devices like iPhones and iPads can typically use Writing Tools—which help create, paraphrase, and edit content—but Meta’s iOS apps conspicuously lack this feature. Furthermore, Genmoji—an Apple feature that uses generative AI to create personalised emojis—would reportedly also be barred by Meta. The company has also stopped supporting the previously available feature of adding Memoji and keyboard stickers to Instagram Stories.

While Meta doesn’t offer an explanation for why its iOS apps do not support Apple Intelligence, there is a high chance it is doing so in a bid to push users to switch to Meta AI, which is present in almost all of Meta’s applications.

The majority of AI functions in Meta apps, such as text and image production, are powered by Meta’s proprietary Llama AI model. New capabilities from Meta’s in-house AI models have also been added by the apps in the past. Notably, Instagram used Meta’s Movie GenAI model to release AI video editing tools last December.

The Meta-Apple strife is also not new, and App Store policies are a common point of contention between the two companies. Additionally, the two tech giants had reportedly talked about a possible collaboration that would introduce Apple Intelligence to Meta’s Llama. But according to reports, Apple opted to back out of the agreement because it didn’t align with the company's privacy practices.

The move comes at a time when Meta is in a legal battle with the Federal Trade Commission, which has alleged that the company has illegally maintained its social networking monopoly via years of anticompetitive behaviour. The case alleges that Facebook has adopted a systematic strategy to drive rivals out of the market, which includes imposing anticompetitive regulations on software developers and purchasing Instagram in 2012 and WhatsApp in 2014.