Meta launches standalone Meta AI app

Meta, the parent company of Facebook, has launched its first standalone artificial intelligence app, Meta AI, marking a significant step in its ambition to create a more personal, voice-focused AI assistant. While Meta AI is already embedded into popular apps like Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger, and Facebook, the new dedicated app aims to deepen user interaction and personalization.

Built on Meta’s Llama 4 large language model, Meta AI is designed for natural, conversational voice interactions. The company emphasizes that its goal is to make AI "easy to talk to" and more attuned to individual user needs. Upon downloading the app, users are prompted to answer personal questions, which Meta says allows the assistant to deliver more tailored and helpful responses.

One of the app’s standout features is its ability to hold voice conversations in the background, allowing users to multitask across other applications without interrupting their interaction with the AI. This hands-free, context-aware experience is currently available in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

In addition to voice chat, Meta AI includes image generation and editing tools, accessible via both voice and text. Users can ask the assistant to create or modify images in real time, enhancing creative workflows directly within the conversation. The assistant can also search the web, offering product recommendations and support for in-depth topic exploration, aided by curated "conversation starters" to prompt user queries.

Meta says it’s drawing on decades of expertise in personalization, honed through its social media platforms, to shape Meta AI. The assistant can remember facts about the user, gather context from ongoing conversations, and leverage data already shared across Meta’s ecosystem—such as profile information and user engagement patterns—to deliver increasingly personalized responses.

With the launch of this app, Meta positions itself firmly in the growing space of personal AI assistants, blending voice interaction, generative capabilities, and contextual awareness. The company says this is just the beginning of its broader vision for AI that understands users not just through data, but through dynamic, human-like conversations.