Social media updates from April 2025
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Posted: Fri 9th May 2025
15 min read
Social media platforms have been under more scrutiny than ever, and there have been updates after updates. But don’t worry; we’ve rounded up the top updates from the month and brought them together for easy reading!
It’s pretty obvious by now that social media never sleeps, and neither do the updates! From surprise launches to subtle tests that could shift your strategy, the platforms have been rolling out new features and experiments at pace. So, whether you’re managing campaigns, creating content or just trying to keep up with what’s working, this roundup has you covered. Let’s take a look at what’s new, what’s next, and what’s worth paying attention to.
YouTube
Let's kick off this month's roundup with a quick update from YouTube, which is experimenting with AI-generated video summaries. This new feature aims to help users find relevant content more efficiently and is like Google’s AI overviews. It’s designed to surface the best parts of videos quickly, saving time and improving the search experience for users. Sounds pretty good to us!
Firstly, for Meta, it's trialling a new feature that lets Meta Verified users mark their posts as “Original”, ensuring that any reposts are linked back to the source. Subscribers will now spot a “Request original credit” toggle when creating a post and if used, it’ll trigger a human review to confirm the content came from their account first. A handy step forward for creators looking to protect their work and gain the recognition they deserve.
Next, and this might surprise some of you, publishers saw a dramatic 74% year-on-year boost in referral traffic from Facebook in March, driven by Meta’s updated approach to political content. After years of declining reach, this marks a major turnaround and hints that Meta may be relaxing its grip on news content distribution. It’s a change that could reshape how publishers (and savvy businesses) approach their Facebook strategy going forward.
This next update sounds a bit like something we’d expect to read about Pinterest! Meta has introduced dynamic overlays for its Advantage+ Catalogue campaigns, allowing advertisers to display key product info, like prices or discounts, as sticker-style labels directly on ad images. The new feature, currently available only on the Facebook feed, adds a visual boost to product ads and could help drive more attention and conversions. So, just make sure your catalogue is up to date with accurate product data before enabling the option.
Threads
On to Threads now, and after 20 months of running, Threads is showing steady momentum; the platform has reached 320 million monthly active users. According to Andrew Hutchinson at SMT, download numbers are also on the rise, with projections suggesting Threads could hit 400 million users later this year. It’s worth noting that it's still behind X’s 600 million monthly users. Threads appears to be gaining ground, particularly as interest in X continues to drop off.
After months of limited testing, Meta has officially expanded ads on Instagram Threads to advertisers worldwide. The rollout includes access to content sensitivity filters, giving brands more control over where their ads appear. Threads feed placement will be enabled by default for all new campaigns using Meta’s Advantage+ or Manual Placements, although advertisers using Manual Placements can always choose to opt out if they wish.
Next, Threads is encouraging users to personalise their profiles by adding interests. This update looks to improve how people discover conversations and connections on the platform. These interest tags will help signal what users care about and what they’re likely to post about, making it easier for users to find like-minded content and communities.
It’s been another big month for Instagram!!
After months of anticipation, Instagram has officially launched its new video editing app, Edits. This app has been positioned as a direct alternative to TikTok’s CapCut, given that, along with TikTok (potentially) being banned, CapCut would be too. Edits gives creators a built-in editing option within the Meta ecosystem, which should be user-friendly. It's worth noting that initial reviews state that it’s still a little on the glitchy side.
Next, Instagram’s latest experiment is Storylines, and it looks set to bring a more collaborative spin to Stories. Described as a feature where friends can contribute to a shared Story thread, it’s like a group-powered version of Add Yours. As more people join in, mutual followers can also take part, though users will have the option to control who can contribute or turn the feature off entirely in their settings. This sounds pretty fun, and could be a great way to increase Story engagement!
It’s another new feature next, with Instagram introducing Blend, which is designed to make Reels more social by creating a shared, personalised feed between friends in a DM thread. It curates content based on everyone’s combined interests, delivering a daily stream of Reels tailored to the group.
What makes Blend stand out is its collaborative approach to content discovery, but it’s currently available by invite only, and all chat members must opt in to join the experience. We're excited about this update.
Some Reely great updates
IG is experimenting with two new filters for the Reels tab, giving users more control over how they browse content. Some users are now seeing options to sort Reels by “Latest” or “Most Viewed” via a dropdown menu, expanding on the current “Following” and “Nearby” filters. If rolled out widely, this small tweak could make discovering trending or fresh content much easier. And that’s something to get excited about!
Finally, Instagram is trialling a playful new feature that adds a layer of mystery to Reels. The test lets creators share locked, blurred Reels that can only be viewed by entering a secret code. But what’s the point? Boost engagement through curiosity and interaction, with subtle clues dropped to help fans crack the code and unlock the content. That could be pretty fun, especially if you’re taking advantage of the subscription features that Meta offers.
TikTok
Let’s start by TikTok rolling out Footnotes, its take on crowdsourced fact-checking, similar to X’s Community Notes. The tool allows approved users to add context beneath videos, helping clarify figures, provide scientific insight, or link to source material. Rather than waiting for official labels, TikTok hopes Footnotes will address misinformation in real-time, especially in content about science, news, or viral claims that spark questions in the comments.
TikTok is also experimenting with a new livestream feature that lets creators highlight comments from selected profiles, making it easier to engage with friends or key viewers in real time. Importantly, those chosen won’t be notified they’ve been marked, allowing creators to prioritise certain interactions discreetly while keeping the broadcast flow natural and engaging.
Next, TikTok is introducing a new alt text option for still image posts, making it easier for creators to add descriptive text that supports accessibility and improves content engagement. You’ll now see an “Add alternative text” field when uploading photos, joining TikTok’s existing accessibility tools like auto-captions, text-to-speech, and manual caption editing. While video remains the platform’s core content, this update shows TikTok is expanding its accessibility features across all formats.
And lastly, TikTok appears to be stepping into the live audio space with a new feature called Audio Rooms, which we spotted via creator and strategist Keenya Kelly. Built into TikTok’s livestream tools, the feature allows users to host real-time voice-based chats, think Clubhouse-style conversations, but within the TikTok ecosystem. While it’s still new, Audio Rooms could open up fresh opportunities for creators to connect, share ideas and build community through live, voice-only interaction.
X
As X continues to put more focus on video content, to tap into broader engagement trends, it is experimenting with an updated video playback UI, which would move the engagement counts up from the bottom of the screen, and the function buttons into the lower black bar along the bottom.
X has also launched a major upgrade to its post analytics, giving users a clearer, more detailed view of how their content is performing. The refreshed interface now breaks down engagement by followers versus non-followers and introduces visual data trends, making it easier for creators and brands to understand what’s working and fine-tune their strategy accordingly.
xAI has unveiled the first version of Grok Studio, an advanced expansion of the Grok chatbot. This new tool allows users to combine multiple inputs, like files and Google Drive documents, to generate a wide range of outputs, including reports, code and even browser-based games. It’s a big step toward more seamless, multimodal content creation powered by AI.
And lastly, xAI is continuing to enhance its Grok chatbot, this time with the launch of a new memory feature. Grok can now retain details from previous conversations, allowing it to offer more tailored responses over time, especially for things like recommendations and recurring topics. While ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini have had similar features for a while, this update marks another step in Grok’s efforts to catch up with the AI heavyweights.
It’s been a while since we had a good few updates from LinkedIn, but it seems like April was a busy month!
First, it has rolled out Qualified Leads Optimisation, a tool designed to help brands generate better leads through more refined ad targeting. Available for campaigns using the Lead Generation objective, the feature lets businesses define what counts as a “qualified” lead. By connecting high-value lead data via the Conversions API, advertisers will be able to reach audiences that mirror their most promising prospects.
Next, LinkedIn is extending the Wire video promotion programme, giving brands the ability to run pre-roll ads alongside premium publisher content within the app. This lets advertisers manually select trusted, professional videos to align their messaging with, boosting brand visibility and adding credibility through association with high-quality media.
LinkedIn is also rolling out its news banner feature to more users, bringing timely, curated stories straight into the mobile feed. After initial testing in select markets, the feature is only available in the US, Canada and India, part of LinkedIn’s push to keep professionals up to date with industry trends and real-time developments that matter to their work.
Your final updates
LinkedIn has added a new feature to its messaging tools, meaning that users can now attach MP4 video files in direct messages. While the 20MB file size limit means only short clips will make the cut, it’s a useful addition for those wanting to share quick video updates or introductions. This builds on LinkedIn’s growing list of supported file types, giving professionals more ways to connect and communicate within the app.
LinkedIn is leaning further into short-form video with a new feature that highlights trending video topics, encouraging users to join the conversation with their responses. These trending themes will appear as header tags within video clips and in the main feed. Tapping a tag reveals a collection of videos from other professionals discussing the same topic, bringing a more social, TikTok-style element to LinkedIn’s content experience.
As part of a wider app redesign, Canva has introduced a fresh set of LinkedIn video templates, making it easier for marketers to create scroll-stopping content for LinkedIn. These templates come with built-in overlays and effects tailored to match current video trends on LinkedIn, offering a quick, polished way to stay relevant and, of course, boost engagement.
And finally
Meta has released a dedicated app for Meta AI, marking a strategic push to increase adoption beyond its existing integration across WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, and Messenger. The standalone app positions Meta more directly in competition with AI heavyweights like OpenAI and Google, as CEO Mark Zuckerberg looks to solidify the company’s place in the growing AI landscape. Will you stick with ChatGPT or give Meta AI a go? Or maybe you’re just overwhelmed with the amount of AI tools out there – it’s a busy market right now!
That’s your lot!
That’s it for this month’s roundup, plenty of changes, tests and new tools to keep your strategy fresh and your content ahead of the curve.
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