• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechInstagram

Meta’s new Candid Challenges feature on Instagram sure looks a lot like social media phenomenon BeReal

By
Chris Morris
Chris Morris
Former Contributing Writer
Down Arrow Button Icon
August 23, 2022, 11:37 AM ET
woman takes selfie
Meta is testing a new feature on Instagram that mimics the BeReal app.Getty Images

Meta is testing a new feature on Instagram that might seem real familiar to users of BeReal, one of the hottest social media tools these days.

Alessandro Paluzzi, a high-profile leaker, has posted word on Twitter that Instagram is working on a feature called Candid Challenges, which sends a daily prompt (at a different time each day) to users to take and share a real-time image within two minutes.

If that sounds familiar, it’s because it’s the exact premise of BeReal, which bills itself as “a new and unique way to discover who your friends really are in their daily life.”

Meta confirmed work on Candid Challenges to Fortune, with a spokesperson saying “This feature is an internal prototype, and not testing externally.”

BeReal has been downloaded more than 20 million times since it debuted. The French startup was founded by former GoPro employee Alexis Barreyat in 2020, and is especially popular among college-age kids. The app focuses on casual photo sharing by sending users a notification at a random time each day to take a picture of what they are doing at that moment. Users then have a two-minute window to capture an image that uses both the front and back phone camera.

BeReal had been downloaded 7.67 million times from the start of 2022 through earlier this month.

Because of its prototype status, Candid Challenge is not available to Instagram users at present. It may, in fact, never be released.

Still, the feature’s close similarity to BeReal is drawing comparisons to the recent rollout of Instagram Reels, Meta’s take on TikTok-style videos, which the company is emphasizing more in Instagram’s main feed, something that has resulted in significant pushback from users. The service’s Stories feature, meanwhile, is a virtual clone of a similar one on Snapchat.

Sign up for the Fortune Features email list so you don’t miss our biggest features, exclusive interviews, and investigations.

About the Author
By Chris MorrisFormer Contributing Writer

Chris Morris is a former contributing writer at Fortune, covering everything from general business news to the video game and theme park industries.

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map

Latest in Tech

C-SuiteLeadership Next
For CEOs in 2025, the year was all about wellness, AI adoption, and changing consumer habits
By Fortune EditorsDecember 31, 2025
3 hours ago
xi
EconomyChina
Xi touts China’s AI, chip wins in triumphant New Year’s speech
By BloombergDecember 31, 2025
4 hours ago
Donald Trump on the phone in front of a Christmas tree
Startups & VentureDonald Trump
Trump Mobile says its first-ever smartphone is delayed, and the government shutdown is to blame
By Dave SmithDecember 31, 2025
9 hours ago
MGI
CommentaryProductivity
The world is awash in wealth but starved for productivity—and that imbalance is distorting growth, debt, and opportunity. We need AI to come through
By Jan Mischke, Olivia White and Rebecca J. AndersonDecember 31, 2025
9 hours ago
Melinda French Gates
SuccessMelinda French Gates
Melinda French Gates got her start at Microsoft because an IBM hiring manager told her to turn down its job offer—’It dumbfounded me’
By Emma BurleighDecember 31, 2025
10 hours ago
Nobuo Hayasaka, president of Kioxia Holdings Corp., stands for photographs during the company's listing ceremony at the Tokyo Stock Exchange in Tokyo, Japan, on Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024.
AIJapan
A Japanese company you’ve never heard of walloped every major US company to become the best-performing stock of 2025
By Eva RoytburgDecember 31, 2025
13 hours ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Europe
George Clooney moves to France and sends a strong message about the American Dream
By Nick LichtenbergDecember 30, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Gen Z could wave goodbye to résumés because most companies have turned to skills-based recruitment—and find it more effective, research shows
By Orianna Rosa RoyleDecember 29, 2025
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Environment
'I opened her door and the wind caught me, and I went flying': The U.S. Arctic air surge is sweeping northerners off their feet
By Holly Ramer and The Associated PressDecember 30, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
C-Suite
Exiting CEO left each employee at his family-owned company a $443,000 gift—but they have to stay 5 more years to get all of it
By Nick LichtenbergDecember 30, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Success
African millennials and Gen Z are quitting their big-city dreams to go make more money back on the farm
By Mark Banchereau and The Associated PressDecember 29, 2025
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Arts & Entertainment
Gen Zers and millennials flock to so-called analog islands 'because so little of their life feels tangible'
By Michael Liedtke and The Associated PressDecember 28, 2025
3 days ago

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.