After nearly a year of suspension, Meta is officially launching its AI chatbot in the European market. Starting this week, Meta AI will be available on familiar applications such as WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger in 41 European countries and 21 overseas territories. However, in the initial phase, users can only experience text-based chat features.Meta AI first launched in the United States in 2023, and the company had plans to expand into Europe. However, these plans were delayed due to concerns about data security. The Irish privacy regulator requested that Meta suspend training its AI on data posted by Facebook and Instagram users. Additionally, the launch of the multimodal Llama AI model in the European Union was also postponed due to legal issues.Initial Features and LimitationsCurrently, Meta AI in Europe will function as a chatbot, assisting users in finding ideas, planning trips, or answering specific questions using information from the internet. European users can also use Meta AI to discover relevant content on their Instagram feeds. However, some advanced features, such as creating or editing images, as well as asking questions about photos, will not be supported in this phase. It is important to note that this AI model is not trained on European user data.Meta's Commitment to European UsersAccording to Meta spokesperson Ellie Heatrick, this launch is the result of nearly a year of active work with European regulators. Meta is committed to continuing to collaborate to ensure that European users can access and benefit from the AI innovations that the company has provided to other regions of the world.Previous AI IntegrationsPreviously, in November of last year, Meta began integrating some AI features into Ray-Ban smart glasses in Europe. However, this version of the glasses does not currently support multimodal features, which allow users to ask Meta AI about what they are seeing. Despite these limitations, Meta has not abandoned its plan to bring more features to the European version of Meta AI. The company affirms that it will strive to achieve parity with the US version and continue to expand its services in the future.Meta AI's return to Europe, albeit with several limitations, demonstrates the company's determination to develop and deploy AI technology globally. With commitments to cooperate with regulators and continuous improvement, Meta promises to bring increasingly better AI experiences to European users. The initial text-based launch reflects a cautious approach, prioritizing regulatory compliance while still delivering valuable AI assistance to users across various platforms.The rollout will be closely monitored by both users and regulators, as Meta navigates the complexities of data privacy and AI deployment in the European market. The success of this launch could pave the way for more advanced AI features in the future, bringing Europe closer to the AI capabilities already available in the United States.
