Instagram Feed AI system

UPDATED JUN 29, 2026
The content you see on your Instagram Feed is selected, ranked and delivered to you by an artificial intelligence (AI) system. Within one AI system, multiple machine learning models work together to deliver your experience. These models and their input signals are dynamic and they change frequently as the system learns and improves over time.

Overview of Instagram Feed

When you view and interact with Instagram, one of the underlying AI systems delivers the connected content you see in your feed, which is powered by the Instagram Feed AI system.
Note: Your feed might also include suggested content and advertisements. That content is not powered by the AI we describe in this system card. Suggested content is described in Instagram Feed Recommendations.
How Instagram Feed works
The Instagram Feed AI system automatically orders the posts in your feed by predicting what you will find most valuable and relevant. These predictions are based on a variety of factors, including what and whom you’ve followed, liked or engaged with recently. Here’s how it works:
  1. Gather available posts
    First, the system gathers all potential posts from accounts you follow, such as posts from friends. It then removes the posts that go against our Community Guidelines.
  2. Leverage signals
    Next, the AI system considers a variety of input signals about each post. These signals might include who created the post or the type of content in the post. A lightweight model is run to select approximately 700 of the most relevant posts. The system also applies certain integrity processes to help reduce the distribution of problematic content.
  3. Make predictions
    From there, the AI system has models that help it make predictions about content you’ll find most relevant and valuable.
  4. Rank posts by score
    Finally, the system calculates a relevance score for about 500 posts and puts them in order by this score. Posts that the system predicts will provide more value for you are shown higher in your feed. The system also tries to ensure your feed has a balanced mix of content types.
How to customize what you see
Your experience on Instagram Feed is personalized based on your activity, and you have options to control or customize what you see. Below, we describe how to do this with different in-product features. Options shown here may not be available to everyone.
Mute
If you don't want to see someone's posts in your feed, you can mute someone on Instagram.
Add to favorites
When you select this option on a post, the account it’s posted from is added to your favorites. You can view and browse all of your favorite accounts in one place.
Share
You can share a post by sending it to a chat, adding it to your story or sharing it to another app or site.
Report
If you see something you think goes against our Community Guidelines, you can report it to us. You can also report posts that you think are spam or false news. The system will try to show you less content that is similar to the content you reported.
Save
You can save a post to your own collection or to a collaborative collection in a chat with friends.
See newest content first
To see content from accounts you follow in reverse chronological order, click "Following” on the home screen. Learn more.
Following/Favorites
You can click the Instagram logo on your home screen and then click on either “Following” or “Favorites” on mobile app. On tablets, from the “Following” tab you can click “Latest” to display content only from accounts you follow in reverse chronological order. When you select this option, you won’t see recommended content from instagram. Posts from accounts you add to your Favorites list will be prioritized when you view your main feed.
Unfollow
To stop seeing posts from a certain account, you can unfollow it.
Hide
In the three-dot overflow menu on a post, you can click “Hide” so you won’t see that post again in your feed. This action also helps to limit similar content from showing up in your feed.
How the AI delivers content to you
We want you to see content you enjoy and find interesting. To achieve this, the AI system has models that help it make predictions about content you'll find most relevant and valuable. These prediction models use underlying input signals to help select content you're most likely to engage with.
Below are some of the significant predictions-and input signals that inform them-that we use in this AI system.
How likely you are to swipe through the whole carousel
Signals influencing this prediction include:
  • How many times you swipe to the next card
  • How many of the carousel's cards you view
  • Whether the carousel was reordered in your Feed
  • Whether the post is a recommended post
  • How many cards are in the carousel
How likely you are to enjoy this post
Signals influencing this prediction include:
  • Whether you take a positive action on the post, such as liking, commenting or resharing
  • How much time you spend on a post
  • The type of media used to set the expected time spent viewing
How likely you are to skip this post
Signals influencing this prediction include:
  • Whether the post is a photo, video, or carousel
  • How likely you are to skip this post compared to other posts shown alongside it
How much time you're likely to spend on the author's profile after seeing this post
Signals influencing this prediction include:
  • How much time you spend on the author's profile
  • Whether the post is a recommended post
  • Whether you visit the author's profile after seeing the post
How likely you are to share a post with someone in a direct message
Signals influencing this prediction include:
  • Whether the post is informative content (news, product reviews, tutorials, how-tos)
  • How recently the post was created (within 90 days)
  • Whether the post is a repost or organic repost
  • Whether you open the post's share sheet and select someone to send it to
  • Whether the post is a recommended post
How much time you're likely to spend on this post
Signals influencing this prediction include:
  • Whether it's a photo and how much text is overlaid on it
  • Which Reels-watch-time group you fall into
  • Whether the post is a recommended post
  • How long you spend on the post
  • How many times you've tapped the reshare button in the last 28 days
How likely you are to skip over the first post in feed
Signals influencing this prediction include:
  • Whether you actually viewed it
  • How much time you spend on the first post
  • Whether you take any action on it
  • Whether the post is the first post in feed
How likely you are to spend more than 10 seconds on the first post
Signals influencing this prediction include:
  • Whether the post is a recommended post
  • Whether that viewing time reaches 10 seconds
  • How long you spend viewing the post, including the in-feed Reels
How likely you are to turn the sound on for this video
Signals influencing this prediction include:
  • Whether the post is a recommended post
  • Whether you turn the sound on while watching
  • Whether the post is a video/Reel
How likely the first post you see is to keep you spending time in your Feed during this session
Signals influencing this prediction include:
  • Whether the post is the first post in feed
  • Whether you saw the first post for at least 3 seconds
  • How much time you spend in the rest of your session after viewing the first post