Archive · 9 Oct 2026
Report Says Meta Muse Builds Detailed User Profiles
A report says Meta’s Muse assistant keeps notes about people who use it.
It can update those notes using chats, messages and emails it can access.
The notes may include information about relationships and communication preferences.
The report says Muse can also make guesses about goals a person has not directly shared.
People mentioned in conversations may be included, even if they do not use Muse.
Meta says the assistant remembers information users choose to share to make its help more useful.
Users can look at Muse’s files, export them or ask it to forget something.
But TIME found that forgetting a detail may not remove the original message.
Meta says identifying information is removed before some lessons are used to improve the product.
TIME reported that Muse updates user profiles hourly using information from chats, messages and emails it can access.
The profiles may map relationships, infer unstated goals and identify communication approaches that could work for users.
People mentioned in conversations may also be included in the profiling, even if they have never used Muse.
Meta said Muse remembers information users choose to share, and that users can view files, export data and ask Muse to forget information.
TIME found that asking Muse to forget something may not delete the original message; Meta says identifying details are removed from de-identified product lessons.
- Who
- Meta and its Muse AI assistant; TIME reported on Muse’s profiling practices.
- What
- A report says Muse builds and updates profiles from information it can access, while Meta says it remembers shared information to personalize the experience.
- When
- Muse reportedly updates profiles hourly and analyzes each day’s conversations nightly; Meta said encryption is planned for later this year.
- Where
- Muse runs in dedicated virtual machines within Meta’s cloud infrastructure.
- Why
- Meta says remembering shared information helps Muse provide a more helpful, personalized experience.
TIME’s findings
Meta’s position
What Muse remembers
TIME’s findings
TIME reported that Muse builds detailed profiles, including relationship dynamics, inferred goals and communication preferences.
Meta’s position
Meta said Muse remembers information users choose to share so it can provide a more helpful experience.
Forgetting information
TIME’s findings
TIME found that a request to forget something may not remove the original message, and reported that Muse’s instructions tell it not to highlight that distinction.
Meta’s position
Meta says users can ask Muse to forget specific information.
Use of observations
TIME’s findings
Muse’s instructions reportedly allow agents to share de-identified lessons, including which kinds of nudges are persuasive.
Meta’s position
Meta says identifying information is removed before those lessons are used to improve the product.
- Profile updates
- Reportedly every hour, using information from chats, messages and emails Muse has accessed.
- Nightly analysis
- Muse reportedly analyzes that day’s conversations each night.
- People mentioned
- The profiling may include people mentioned by users, even if those people have never used Muse.
- User controls
- Users can view files and session logs, export copies of Muse files, and ask Muse to forget specific information.
- Forget requests
- TIME found that asking Muse to forget something does not necessarily remove the original message containing it.
- Data use
- Meta says Muse data is not shared with its advertising system or other Muse agents; de-identified lessons may be used to improve the product.
- Planned encryption
- Meta said it plans to introduce encryption later this year that would prevent the company from accessing Muse data; it is not currently available.
- Reported popularity
- The article says Muse had passed 5 million downloads and reached No. 1 on the US App Store since its release the previous month.