Instagram rolls out TikTok-like features amid uncertainty about rival’s future

Instagram has rolled out a number of updates in recent days that appear to be aimed at attracting TikTok users while the short-video app’s future remains in limbo. And on Sunday, Instagram parent company Meta went one step further and announced the launch of a new video creation app on Sunday called Edits, which bears an uncanny resemblance to CapCut, the app owned by TikTok parent company ByteDance that many creators use to make TikTok videos.

Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, said on Friday that Instagram’s profile photo grids will now display images as rectangles, rather than the app’s signature squares — a layout that’s notably similar to how profile pages look on TikTok.

On Saturday, Mosseri said Instagram will increase the maximum length for Reels videos from 90 seconds to three minutes — following the lead of TikTok, which began pushing users to post longer videos in 2023.

“We’ve historically only allowed reels up to 90 seconds given our focus on short-form video, but we’ve heard the feedback that this is just too short for those who want to share longer stories,” Mosseri said Saturday in an Instagram post.