The news: Instagram is testing a Snapchat-like app called Instants internally, a Meta spokesperson told Business Insider. Instants is a standalone app that allows users to send disappearing photos.

Zooming out: Instants isn’t the first time Meta has experimented with features mimicking other social platforms within its larger ecosystem.

• Instagram debuted “Friends Map” in August, which bore similarities to Snapchat’s established map feature that allows users to see where their friends are. In 2016, Instagram debuted a “Stories” feature that cloned Snapchat’s own.
• Meta has seen massive success with its introduction of Reels, a feature that strategically capitalized on TikTok’s short-form vertical video success. Reels now hosts over half of Instagram’s ads and accounts for 46% of time spent with the app by US users, per Sensor Tower.
• Meta’s Threads platform is positioned as a competitor to X, with both apps focusing on text-based social interactions.

Meta’s bet: The social media giant is banking on its engaged, established audience to guarantee success with new app launches.