Meta blocks Apple's AI features for iPhone users on WhatsApp, Instagram, and other apps

Apple vs Meta

In a quiet but telling move, Meta has disabled support for Apple Intelligence features in its suite of iOS apps—including Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads, and Instagram. The decision, first reported by Brazilian blog Sorcererhat Tech, blocks users from accessing tools like Writing Tools and Genmoji, both key features of Apple’s AI push.

Launched with iOS 18.1 back in October, Apple Intelligence brings system-wide AI features to iPhones and iPads, including smart text editing, proofreading, and emoji generation via Genmoji. These tools are designed to be deeply integrated — tap into any text field and they just show up. Except, apparently, in Meta’s family of popular apps.

While most third-party apps get these features by default, Apple allows developers to opt out — and Meta seems to have done just that. In fact, the company has also quietly stripped the ability to add keyboard stickers and Memoji in Instagram Stories, removing functionality that was previously available.

Meta isn’t saying why and hasn’t made any official comment, but the subtext is loud and clear: it likely wants users to rely on Meta AI, its own growing suite of generative tools that offer similar capabilities. Meta AI is already embedded across its apps and supports text editing, image generation, and more. That overlap may have been reason enough to keep Apple’s tools out of its walled garden. Not to forget the frosty relationship the two companies have shared in the past.

Interestingly, Apple and Meta were once in talks to integrate Meta’s Llama language model into Apple Intelligence, but that deal reportedly fell through over privacy disagreements, as per a report by The Wall Street Journal. The two tech giants have long butted heads over App Store rules and data policies—and this latest snub only deepens the rivalry.

For now, if you’re hoping to use Apple Intelligence inside a Meta app, don’t hold your breath.