Instagram’s testing a new auto-scroll option with some users, which could make it easier to consume a heap of posts that are fed to you by IG’s algorithm.
As you can see in this example, posted by @earningwithdedra (and shared by Lindsey Gamble), some IG users now have a new “Auto scroll” toggle within their post settings, which, as it sounds, enables you to activate an automatic scrolling main feed, so you don’t have to go to the effort of swiping down to get to the next update.
To be clear, this is for posts, not Reels, which already have an auto-scrolling function (that you can switch off, if you choose). But given that a heap of the content on IG is Reels, it’s going to inherently apply to at least some Reels as well, though that’s not the main focus of this update.
The focus here is your main IG feed.
Which, if the algorithm is really attuned to your interests, could be good, or maybe if you’re, like, at the dentist or something and you can’t touch the screen, it could be handy for that as well.
But I don’t know. Mindless scrolling is already problematic, and mindless and motionless scrolling seems, in a way, to replicate the brainwashing-style torture that they show in old movies.
But maybe, for some people, in some situations, this could be good, and could help them stay across all of the latest content related to their interests.
Both TikTok and YouTube also offer auto-scrolling, so you don’t have to trouble yourself with the physical labor of extending a finger, and that, presumably, is a popular option in those apps. Which would be why IG is also doing it, but yeah, it does seem like a bit of an unnecessary step, right?
Maybe not, I don’t know, but either way, it looks to be coming soon to all users.
We’ve asked IG for clarification on this option, and the planned roll-out for each region. We’ll update this post if/when we hear back.
