Last month, a new social-media app started making the rounds. On SocialAI, the pitch goes, you’re always the “main character,” you’ll always get engagement, your replies will always be full, and you’ll have exactly the types of followers you want. The catch is that none of these followers are people — they’re all characters generated by AI.

Facial recognition is one of the most polarizing technologies on the market, but Meta is hoping people will be more willing to accept it if it means they can keep their Facebook and Instagram accounts under their control.