Instagram Launches Quiet Mode to Give You Peace of Mind

Meta is launching a new Quiet mode for Instagram users in an effort to curb some of the addictive appeal of the image-based social media site. 

The new mode launches today and is accessible via the settings tab on your app. Once engaged, Quiet mode helps you manage your time and focus in a few ways. First, it auto-replies to direct messages (DMs) and does not even alert you to these messages, freeing up mental space for more important things. 

On the topic of alerts, Quiet mode eliminates all notifications from the app. This is easily done via your phone’s settings, but it is always nice to have another option, particularly if you are already using the app and want to conserve your screen-tapping energy. 

Much of Quiet mode also involves teenagers and their rampant social media use. If you are registered as a teenager and using Instagram at night, the app will recommend the mode after a pre-determined amount of time. One assumes this is to encourage teens to stop replying to DMs and, you know, go to sleep. 

Quiet mode is available now in the US, UK, Ireland, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, with more countries coming soon. 

Instagram is also reworking how the recommendations algorithm operates, allowing users to hide multiple pieces of content simultaneously. Each removed item tells the AI that you no longer want to see posts of that type.