Day: October 4, 2025

• Instagram users have been concerned that the app listens to conversations to serve targeted ads.
• Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, said in a video that the app uses other ways to feed ads.
• “We do not listen to you,” Mosseri said.

Ever had a conversation with your friend about something, and then Instagram, almost immediately, feeds you ads for that very thing?

You may have thought to yourself: “Is Instagram listening to my conversations?”

Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, is aware of how you feel. Even his wife brought up the subject to him a few times.

The Instagram boss posted a “myth-busting” video on Wednesday to set the record straight: “I swear, we do not listen to your microphone.”

“First of all, if we did, it would be a gross violation of privacy. You would drain your phone’s battery, and you would notice. And you would actually see a little light at the top of the screen letting you know that the mic was on,” he said.

Mosseri explained that Instagram has other mechanisms in place to serve targeted ads.

For one, a user may have “tapped” on something related or may have searched for a particular product online before the conversation began.

“We actually do work with advertisers who share information with us about who was on their website to try to target those people with ads,” he said.

The Instagram app also considers what users’ friends are interested in and what similar people with similar interests are looking at.

“So it could be that you were talking to someone about a product and they, before, had actually looked for or searched for that product,” Mosseri said. “Or that in general, people with similar interests were doing the exact same thing.”

Mosseri said another explanation could be that the user may have unknowingly already seen the ad before a conversation took place, influencing what the user talks about later.

“We scroll quickly, we scroll by ads quickly, and sometimes you internalize some of that, and that actually affects what you talk about later,” he said.

Instagram has explained on its website that ads are served based on a mix of a user’s activity on and off Meta’s platforms. This could include tracking a user’s activity online through third-party cookies, even if they didn’t log in with their Facebook account on a particular website.

A spokesperson for Meta did not respond to a request for comment.

Meta will start to look at AI convos

Meta may not listen to your real-life conversations with others to serve ads. But your chats with the company’s AI tools are a different story.

On the same day Mosseri published his video, Meta said that it will start personalizing ads based on users’ interactions with chatbots.

“We will soon use your interactions with AI at Meta to personalize the content and ads you see, including things like posts and reels,” the company said in a statement on Wednesday.

Meta said that people will be notified about this update starting next week via notifications and emails. The update will go into effect on December 16, 2025.

Business Insider previously reported how Meta improves its AI chatbots by using human contract workers who will read the conversations between humans and the chatbots.

A Meta spokesperson said at the time that the company has “strict policies” about how workers handle sensitive information.

Mosseri, the Instagram head, provided one more explanation for why an Instagram user might see an ad for something they just talked about: Pure coincidence.

“Random chance. Coincidence. It happens,” he said.

Mosseri said that he knows people still won’t believe him even after posting the video. This is not the first time he’s had to address the spying rumors, after all.

• Mark Zuckerberg said he curates his closet using Instagram ads.
• Instagram ads is big business for Meta, generating over $32 billion in revenue in 2024.
• Zuckerberg, whose style has evolved, said he wears a lot of “Instagram advertising that got me.”

Sometimes the student becomes the master, and sometimes the algorithm gets the better of its creator.

Mark Zuckerberg recently revealed that he’s just as susceptible as the rest of us to Instagram’s targeted ads, which seem to get better every year at recommending the right products at the exact moment you’re open to buying them.

“I spend so much time in Instagram ads curating my closet. Most of what I wear — this, this, these shoes, definitely,” Zuckerberg said in a recent interview with Drip, a popular Instagram fashion account.

The Meta CEO said that essentially, his entire outfit — a black, long-sleeved, collared shirt; fitted blue pants; and white and grey sneakers with orange accents — was purchased through Instagram ads.

Zuckerberg said he wears a lot of Mike Amiri, with whom the billionaire has partnered in the past on custom tees, as well as John Elliott. He also name-dropped the shoes he was wearing in the video as the Swedish brand Axel Arigato, adding that what he wears is “a lot of Instagram advertising that got me.” The shoes appear to be the brand’s Genesis Neo Runner, which retail for $310.

Zuckerberg has undergone a much-talked-about style evolution in recent years, complete with gold chains and hype-beast t-shirts. The billionaire told Drip that he started paying more attention to his personal style during the pandemic. “I used to just wear the same thing every day,” he said, adding, “During COVID, I was just like, ‘We gotta have some fun and get some variation.'”

In addition to outfitting its CEO, Instagram ads also make big money for Meta. Instagram generated over $32 billion in advertising revenue in 2024, according to data from EMARKETER. Meta’s total revenue in 2024 was $164.5 billion. In 2021, Instagram ads accounted for 27% of Meta’s total revenue, court filings revealed last year.

“It is a newer way to shop online, which is more about what the algorithm feels you’ll like,” said Amanda Massi, a luxury personal stylist based in Los Angeles and Las Vegas, adding, “Now social media is a digital mall.”

Massi told Business Insider that while her high-net-worth clients don’t typically shop via Instagram (“They want exclusivity,” she said), it’s becoming increasingly popular with younger generations.

Zuckerberg, whose estimated net worth is $256 billion, has not said if he has a personal stylist or not. But if he does, Massi said his Instagram shopping habit would be in addition to the shopping a stylist would do for him. Her clients will occasionally send her something they’ve found on their own, just to run it by her before making a purchase.

“I feel like Mark saying that he cares about shopping is a huge moment. That he’s even acknowledging fashion at all is great,” Massi said, adding that namedropping brands like Zuckerberg did is a bit of a change for the tech world, and that a lot of the men in tech she’s worked with have kept her a secret.

Instagram ads can be good for ideas, but be mindful

Massi said that for the average consumer, Instagram ads can be a good way to discover new brands. “It’s a very authentic and personalized approach as compared to traditional advertising,” she said.

Charline Zeroual, a sustainable wardrobe stylist based in Los Angeles, said that while some people may find Instagram ads useful for shopping, she generally doesn’t recommend them to her clients.

In her experience, the clients will be scrolling in bed, see something that looks great, and order it without thinking much about how it will actually fit them or how it will work with the rest of their wardrobe.

“When it comes to shopping, it has to be intentional and thoughtful,” she said. “I feel like buying from Instagram is not thoughtful. It’s compulsive.”

That being said, she said buying from Instagram could make sense for certain people, especially those who really know their sense of style and what looks good on them. She said for tech guys like Zuckerberg, who tend to be relatively slender and dress in something of a uniform — black shirt, dark jeans, white shoes — it would likely be easier.

In the interview with Drip, Zuckerberg said that most of his shirts these days are black or white, but noted that he had gone through a “gray T-shirt phase.”

Zeroual also noted the brands Zuckerberg named are high-end — jeans from Amiri could set you back $1,200 — and she doubts most people are making those bigger purchases on Instagram. They might use Instagram to discover a designer’s new collection, but they’re likely to buy directly at that price point.

“Like buying a pair of Chanel flats directly from Instagram? Uh-uh,” she said. “You’re going to go to Chanel or you’re going to go to Saks or Neiman Marcus.”

Do you have a story to share? Contact this reporter at kvlamis@businessinsider.com.

• Portland, Oregon, is a rare jurisdiction that legalized tiny homes on wheels as permanent housing.
• THOWs are cheaper and easier to install than traditional accessory dwelling units.
• Advocates are pushing to legalize them in more places amid a shortage of affordable starter homes.

When Emilie Karas bought an old, rundown house on a quarter-acre residential lot in Portland, Oregon, in early 2020, she never expected to replace it with four homes that would house nine people.

That’s because, as Karas was in the middle of rebuilding her new house, the city legalized up to two backyard cottages, or, in housing policy speak, “accessory dwelling units” (ADU) on residential lots with an existing home. But then the city went even further, allowing each lot to also house an RV or other mobile home for full-time habitation.

Karas quickly jumped on the opportunity and built two ADUs stacked on top of each other, like a duplex, in her backyard. But she didn’t stop there. She also bought and installed a furnished, pre-fabricated “tiny home on wheels” — a pocket-sized moveable house on an 8-by-24-foot trailer.

Tiny homes on wheels (THOWs) are a hybrid of a camper and a backyard cottage. If their wheels are concealed, you might mistake one for a regular tiny home, but they’re constructed on a trailer chassis and can be moved.

They’re “a smaller, cuter version of a typical American house,” said Kol Peterson, a Portland-based tiny home advocate and contractor. But they’re legally considered vehicles, meaning they aren’t subject to the often burdensome regulations permanent homes are. Amid a nationwide shortage in housing, they could be a new option for people looking for an affordable starter home, if more places follow in Portland’s footsteps.

“There are all these philosophical elements to it, such as the ability to have freedom of mobility, and not have a mortgage, and downsizing and living simply, having a small ecological footprint,” Peterson said. “But I think underlying all that is just the sheer economics of it and the fact that these are the only attainable housing type for a lot of Americans.”

Karas’ tiny home on wheels was much easier and cheaper to add to her property than her ADUs. The difference was “night and day,” she said.

The process of building the ADUs was similar to constructing a normal home — they needed an expensive foundation, and were subject to a slew of building and zoning codes. Because THOWs are considered vehicles by most jurisdictions, including Portland, the city doesn’t require them to be certified or inspected, and they aren’t subject to local infrastructure fees. She paid about $60,000 to buy the fully-furnished THOW and have it delivered from Florida, where it was manufactured. And she spent another few thousand dollars having it installed on her property.

For the last two years, Karas has rented out her THOW and two ADUs and lives in the main house with her partner and three roommates. She charges $1,200 a month, including utilities, for the THOW.

“It creates an even more affordable option for folks who maybe are lower income to have a really safe, beautiful home,” Karas, 38, said of her THOW. “They have to live in community with other people, but we have a really great vibe.”

In most places outside Portland and designated RV parks, it isn’t legal to live in tiny homes on wheels full-time. By recognizing THOWs as permanent housing, Portland is “fostering a very radical, inexpensive housing type to exist legally within this otherwise extremely regulated industry that has nothing but very expensive homes,” Peterson said.

A cheaper starter home

Like RVs, THOWs can be built entirely in a factory, don’t require a permanent foundation, and are mobile. They can also be designed to operate off-grid, without access to an outside water, electricity, or sewer system.

But what really sets them apart from other stand-alone homes is their low price point. Peterson estimated that most THOW owners spend between $50,000 and $150,000 to purchase and install their unit, which typically includes hooking it up to water, electricity, and a sewer line. ADUs, by contrast, typically cost between $100,000 and $300,000 to build, not including the cost and time required to obtain permits.

“The cost advantage is so enormous and the housing shortage is so substantial that you can totally see a lot of homeowners be like, ‘I cannot afford to build a backyard cottage — I had it priced out and the bid came back at $350,000 — but I could totally afford to put in a tiny home on wheels,'” said Alan Durning, executive director of the Seattle-based progressive think tank Sightline Institute.

But the vast majority of jurisdictions in the US have restrictions on living in THOWs or other structures classified as vehicles.

“Most people who want to buy our product we cannot sell to,” said Jonathan Palley, the CEO of a California-based THOW and ADU builder called Clever Tiny Homes. “Not because they can’t afford it, not because it wouldn’t be great for them, but because you cannot put it on that land.”

Of course, tiny houses on wheels are just one solution to a vast and complex nationwide housing shortage. Cities need to focus on legalizing and building denser housing, like new apartment buildings, especially in commercial and transit corridors, said Jenny Schuetz, vice president of housing at Arnold Ventures. Schuetz also expects THOWs will have a harder time taking off in wealthier places that have traditionally opposed new and denser housing construction.

“I’d be shocked if the snooty Boston and Connecticut suburbs allow tiny homes on wheels anywhere,” Schuetz said.

Despite the restrictions and local pushback, Jen McCarthy, founder of Teacup Tiny Homes, a Canadian THOW builder, says she’s seen growing interest in her homes, which were particularly popular during the pandemic years. Over the last couple of years, she’s had more older customers looking to downsize or add a home to their property for their relatives.

“It’s not just a cool millennial thing anymore,” McCarthy said. “We’re starting to see that maybe the baby boomers or the Gen Xers are seeing how important it can be to house the people that they care for.”

Julie Lennox, 59, is one such customer. The Montana resident has lived in her Teacup THOW on her aging parents’ 15-acre property near Missoula for the last three years. After selling her house a few years ago, she wanted a more affordable home that she’d be able to move off her parents’ property or resell in the future.

“I’m now almost 60, and have no mortgage, and I’m able to be close to my parents and help them out,” said Lennox, who’s the head of a local private school. “It turned out to be a good decision.”

THOW advocates say they’re a better investment and offer a higher quality of living than traditional RVs. THOWs are mobile — they most often towed by a pick-up truck — but they’re not designed to hit the road as often as RVs do. This means they’re made with many of the same materials you’d use to build a regular house, while RVs are made with lighter-weight, travel-friendly materials like plastic.

Some THOW manufacturers help their clients navigate local regulations with creative products. Clever Tiny Homes manufactures both permanent and mobile tiny homes, including THOWs that can later be converted into ADUs on permanent foundations. Palley is working with a few customers who lost their homes earlier this year in the Eaton fire in Altadena, California, where local authorities are allowing residents to live in a mobile home on their property for a few years. These customers could resell their THOWs when the emergency rule expires, or they could install them as permanent backyard homes, Palley said.

“You can get it immediately as an RV because it’s easy to permit, and then you can install it later as a permanent structure, because it’s certified as modular construction as well,” he said.

Manufacturers and other advocates for THOWs are bullish that they could offer millions of people a more affordable type of starter home or retirement housing. Peterson, Durning, and other housing advocates in the Pacific Northwest are now pushing to legalize them at the state level in Oregon and Washington.

Durning called THOW legalization the next frontier in the push for more affordable starter homes and infill development.

“The leading edge is the ADU market fully developing in most places,” he said. “And the bleeding edge is the tiny homes on wheels.”