Meta-owned social media platform Instagram introduced several new sharing features at once designed to make it easier for users to keep in touch with their friends, including BeReal-like Candid Stories, Twitter-like Notes, and Group Profiles.
- Notes
Notes are short messages up to 60 characters containing just text or emoji. To leave a note, go to the top of your inbox, select followers or other people from your Close Friends list, then type and share your note. It will be displayed at the top of the inbox for 24 hours. Replies to notes will be displayed as DMs.
- Candid Stories
Instagram has also started testing Candid Stories – a BeReal-like feature that will allow users to capture and share what they're doing in real-time. Such stories will only be visible to those who also share their own. Like BeReal, Instagram will send daily notification reminders. Those who do not want to receive them can always turn them off in Settings. Meta is also testing a similar feature on Facebook Stories.
- Group Profiles
Group Profiles will allow multiple users to share posts and stories through a dedicated shared profile. That content will only be available to group members, not followers. To create a new group profile, tap the + button and select Group Profiles to create one.
The new features are designed to encourage interactions between friends on the app. Notes are rolling out to all iOS and Android users, while the rest of the new features are still in early-stage tests.