Meta to use off-site business data to personalize Feed and AI

Meta announced it will use information businesses share about users’ off-site activity to personalize content in Feeds and in responses from its AI chatbot, extending the use beyond targeted advertising.

The company plans to begin the rollout next month in the United States, United Kingdom, Brazil, Thailand, South Africa, Turkey, South Korea, Ecuador, Nigeria and Kenya.

Meta said in a statement: “We already use this data – like games you play or purchases you make on other websites – to make the ads you see more relevant. In the future, we’ll use this information to personalize other parts of your experience, including the content you see in your Feed and AI responses.”

Businesses already share data such as games played or purchases made on other websites to make ads more relevant, and Meta will reuse that information for feed and AI personalization. The company said it will not collect new types of data as part of the update.

The platform control formerly called “Activity information from ad partners” will be renamed and expanded to “Activity from other businesses.” A separate setting named “Your activity off Meta technologies” will be removed. The new control will let people choose whether data shared by external businesses affects ads and non-ad content across Meta services.

If a person allows use of off-site data, content and ads may reflect recent activity; Meta offered the example of a recent tent purchase leading to more Reels about camping. If a person declines, recommendations will be based on activity that occurs on Meta platforms, such as liking a Reel or a post.

Meta noted businesses can provide customer lists, for example people who signed up to receive emails, and the company uses those lists for ad targeting.

Meta described the update as a reorganization of existing practices and said users will be able to manage personalization through the revised settings.