Instagram has officially launched Blend, a new reels-sharing feature designed to enhance content discovery between friends. The new feature is accessible through direct messages, the Blend enables users to collaborate on a shared stream of recommended reels. Blend builds personalised feeds based on shared viewing habits, creating a more interactive content-sharing experience.
Enhancing Content Collaboration via Direct Messaging
Instagram is streamlining how users share and consume reels with friends through Blend, a feature that builds on its most-used interaction: private sharing via DMs.
Users can now create a Blend feed, which will be sent as an invite via DM. Instead of passing videos back and forth, the shared feed will show you all of the reels that you and your friends would be shown individually, within a single stream, with suggestions based on each person’s recent activity.
Delivering Scalable and Real-Time Personalisation
Blend sets itself apart through a live, feedback-driven content stream. The Blend feed will re-align itself to your collective interests based on future reels that you share in the chat. The feed evolves to match shifting group interests.
Engagement tools are built into the experience, when chat members do comment or react to a reel, that’ll trigger a notification in the chat, helping to spark more discussion.
Creating an Informal Engagement Through Shared Experiences
Blend is built around a more casual, social feel, encouraging users to react in real time. Instagram notes that people might drop comments like, “This reel is sooo you,” turning the shared content into a springboard for ongoing conversation. In doing so, Instagram hopes to deepen interpersonal connections through content discovery.
It’s also an attempt to introduce a more collaborative tone to content sharing, with Blend serving as a space where diverse interests converge.
For example, one group member might be into dog videos, another into DIY projects, and another into fitness. All of those preferences are funnelled into the same feed—an experiment in collective curation.
Assessing Market Response and User Sentiment
Instagram’s enthusiasm for Blend is evident—“Instagram seems excited about the possibilities.” But not all users share that sentiment. The concept of automating reels sharing has prompted concerns that the feature “feels less personal, and maybe less engaging.”
The previous approach—manually choosing content to share “like small gifts”—offered a sense of connection that critics fear may be diluted. Yet the idea still holds promise. “Still, it could be something,” a source observed.
Integrating Blend into Existing User Journeys
Blend’s rollout keeps user interaction at the centre. Users “tap on the Blend icon at the top of the chat, then invite participants,” triggering an instant shared feed. The feature enters an environment where both reels and private messaging dominate engagement, its ability to blend discovery and dialogue will be closely watched.
Conclusion
Blend is a shift in how Instagram users interact with reels, moving from passive sharing to real-time, collaborative content curation. Instagram is doubling down on social discovery to boost engagement by combining personalised recommendations with direct messaging.