Meta touched on AI and the metaverse at an event for advertisers, as part of IAB NewFronts, where it also launched augmented reality ads in Instagram Reels.

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, held the showcase in New York’s Hudson Yards, where Ashley Park, the co-star of “Emily in Paris,” led the hour-long session. Meta used the event to push Reels, the video format that competes with TikTok. Meta also has been trying to catch up with Snap on augmented reality, and extended AR ads into Reels after they had been available on Facebook and Instagram feed ads. Tiffany & Co. and Sephora were among the first brands to test the ads in Reels.

“Adding AR camera effects to mobile ads can significantly improve campaign performance,” said Nicola Mendelsohn, Meta’s VP of global business group. AR makes it possible to virtually try-on products and play digital effects, Mendelsohn explained.

Meta has been refining its ad sales tactics over the past year, especially as it de-emphasized the metaverse while it focuses on the core business, running ads on Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. Meta also has been more vocal about how AI is used in the ad platform, but it did not have any generative AI ad updates to share.

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AI features

Meta, Google, Amazon, TikTok and Snap have all taken steps to launch AI features after Microsoft started dominating the AI conversation. Microsoft has been incorporating ChatGPT into all its products, including the new Bing Chat. Meta and Google have been developing AI for years, but they have been mostly quiet about consumer applications until now. AI is very much a part of how ad and content algorithms work on Meta and Google. AI is key to running “smart” ad campaigns—with better targeting and measurement.

Meta has an AI shopping ad program baked into its platform, which it upgraded last year. Meta’s machines handle most of the legwork of analyzing the ad creative, targeting the audiences, and measuring conversions—when the ads work. Advertisers saw more than 20% more conversions in the fourth quarter of 2022, compared to the year before, Mendelsohn told the audience.

Maintaining conversions has been an important metric for Meta, especially after Apple cut down on sharing data with apps on devices, and as cookies started going away from web browsers. Apps that live on advertising, including Facebook and Instagram, had to rebuild their ad platforms to keep showing results to marketers, and AI is a part of that work.

At last year’s NewFronts, Meta focused more on the metaverse, highlighting work it did with Wendy’s in virtual reality. Meta owns Oculus, the VR device. Meta did not ignore the metaverse this year, but it was less of a focus. Bianca Bradford, Meta’s director and head of agency North America, held a talk with Mondelēz, which touched on Oreo’s “Oreoverse” activation from earlier this year. Jennifer Mennes, VP, global head of digital marketing and partnerships, talked about the “Oreoverse” and the broader campaign, which tied into the promotion of the “Most Oreo Oreo” limited edition cookie.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been a little sensitive about reports that suggested the company was abandoning the metaverse while it goes after AI. “A narrative has developed that we're somehow moving away from focusing on the metaverse vision, so I just want to say upfront that that's not accurate,” Zuckerberg said during Meta’s earnings call last month. “We've been focusing on both AI and the metaverse for years now, and we will continue to focus on both.”

AI is being incorporated into features that could assist the development of augmented reality, avatars and other metaverse-related areas, Zuckerberg said.