Meta will start using conversations with an AI chatbot for ad targeting

Meta will start using users’ conversations with its AI chatbot to personalize ads and content on Facebook and Instagram starting December 16, 2025, The Wall Street Journal reported. For example, if a user asks the chatbot about local hiking trails, they could get ads for hiking gear or similar content in their feed.

Users will not be able to opt out of the new policy, but certain types of conversations will be automatically excluded from personalization: these include topics such as religion, political views, sexual orientation, health, and race or ethnicity. Conversations held before December 16 will not be used. Users in the EU, the UK, and South Korea will also not be affected by the new policy, at least initially.

The company explains that personalizing conversations with AI will be a key element of CEO Mark Zuckerberg's vision of an "augmented AI" future with personal superagents to help with everyday tasks. To realize the plan, Meta will spend up to $600 billion on AI infrastructure in the coming years.

Meta is already actively integrating AI into its services: for example, in September the company launched a feature of AI-generated short videos. OpenAI and other competitors are also experimenting with using data for commercial purposes: OpenAI recently allowed to buy products through ChatGPT, Google is testing advertising alongside AI search features, and X is using AI to improve ad targeting.

According to Meta, user conversations will be one of the "signaling" parts for advertising, and the company is currently working on the first product that will directly use this data.