Instagram introduces shopping through images, virtual test

Facebook Inc.'s Instagram is adding new shopping tools, like letting people search for products using an image, as it expands e-commerce offerings across its family of apps.

"A lot of shopping discovery begins with visual discovery, right, so you see something that you think is awesome," Facebook Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg explained at a live event Tuesday. "Maybe you want to see other products that are like that, or you want to figure out how to get that product. And this is the type of problem that AI can really help out with."

Instagram will also make it easier for some companies to offer tests with augmented reality technology so that people can see what products like makeup and shoes look appear on them and faces - a behaviour that competitor Snapchat brought into the mainstream during the Covid. -19 pandemic. The option will be open to companies that already use ModiFace or PerfectCorp technology to offer this type of experience elsewhere on the Internet. Facebook said it is testing the capability in Instagram stores and Facebook ads with a handful of brands and plans to expand access later this summer.

Facebook has prioritized creating e-commerce tools to ensure that small businesses that had to close their physical stores during the pandemic develop the habit of selling their products online, especially on Facebook properties. Increasingly, major retailers are setting up digital stores, creating virtual test shopping experiences, or using augmented reality advertising to reach younger consumers on apps like Facebook, Pinterest, TikTok, and Snap from ByteDance Ltd. The company also announced which was adding virtual stores to WhatsApp and Facebook Marketplace.