🔍 Read the full analysis: How To Think About Message Access In Meta’s AI Agent on ThorstenMeyerAI.com
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TL;DR
Meta’s Muse personal AI agent can access information through connected services, including some Meta apps, and its privacy policy says it may collect information about people other than the user. WIRED and TIME reported that Muse’s instructions direct it to build and refresh profiles of people mentioned in users’ messages; Meta did not dispute the findings and says users control their agent’s access. The scope of those profiles, how long information remains after deletion, and what non-users can do about it are not fully clear.
Meta has expanded its Muse personal AI agent to Singapore while facing questions about how it handles messages belonging to people who never signed up. WIRED and TIME reported that Muse’s instructions tell it to maintain profiles of people mentioned in a user’s chats and refresh those records hourly; Meta did not dispute TIME’s findings and says each user controls what the agent can access.
Muse connects to services through links Meta calls connectors. Meta’s help information says users can connect email and calendars, and can grant access to Mac Messages by approving macOS Full Disk Access and enabling the connector. Meta says email access lets Muse search messages, but does not download the entire inbox unless the user directs it to. Calendar connectors may send updates to Muse proactively.
Meta says Facebook, Instagram and Threads connect automatically when they are included in the same Accounts Center as Muse. Meta chief AI officer Alexandr Wang has also said the Instagram connector includes direct messages and that Muse has a Messenger connector. The company’s help pages do not fully specify the material those Meta-app connectors can access. In WhatsApp, Muse is a chat a user opens; the source report says it is not a reader of the person’s other WhatsApp chats.
Reports by WIRED and TIME describe instructions for Muse to create a page for each person in a user’s life, including people appearing in chats, messages and emails, and to update the records hourly. TIME’s account says these records can include relationships, shared interests and disputes. Meta did not dispute the reported instructions. Its privacy policy says Muse may store “information about you or others,” but the precise reach and retention of individual profile details remain unclear.
Infographic 01 · What Muse can read
Muse reads what its user can read. That includes you.
Connectors decide what the agent sees. The user switches them on. The people in that user’s chats and inbox are never asked.
Sources a Muse user can open to the agent
The agent reads what its user can read. Everyone who writes to that user is inside.
| Source | How it connects | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Email (Gmail, Outlook) | Opt-in connector. Searches when a task needs it; downloads the whole inbox only if told to. | Meta document |
| Calendar | Opt-in connector. Can push changes to Muse on its own (“proactive”). | Meta document |
| Facebook, Instagram, Threads | Connected automatically if the accounts share an Accounts Center with Muse. | Meta document |
| Instagram DMs, Messenger | Named as Muse-only connectors (“Instagram (incl dm’s) … and Messenger”). What they read is not documented. | executive post |
| Mac Messages (iMessage) | Only with macOS Full Disk Access plus the Messages connector, Meta says. One columnist says it synced anyway. | disputed case |
| A place to chat with Muse, not a connector. Test-build text mentions Muse access to end-to-end encrypted chats. | leaked code | |
| Custom connectors | Muse can build links to other services. Meta does not review them. | Meta document |
What the instructions say
Extracted by researchers; reported by WIRED and TIME reported
- “A page for every person in the user’s life”: family, partners, friends, colleagues, people followed
- Notes on how people met, shared interests, disputes, “tensions and alliances”
- People who never signed up are mapped by other users’ agents
- De-identified “lessons” shared across agents; Meta did not dispute TIME’s findings
What Meta says
Privacy policy, help pages, spokespeople Meta document
- Each user’s VM is isolated; no other user’s agent can reach it
- Conversations and VM data are not shared with Meta’s ad systems
- “Each person stays in control of their Muse and decides how much access it gets”
- Forgetting works “to the best of its ability”; deleted data may still be remembered
Sources: Meta Help Center: Connectors; Muse Privacy Policy; Alexandr Wang on X (8 Sep 2026); TIME (6 Oct 2026); Tom’s Guide on WIRED’s report (6 Oct 2026); TechCrunch (30 Sep 2026); Digit (16 Oct 2026). Status labels: Meta document = stated by Meta; executive post = Meta executive on X, not in help pages; disputed = claim and denial on record; leaked = unreleased code, may never ship.
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When Someone Else Connects Their Messages
The issue is not limited to people who choose to use Muse. If an agent can process a user’s correspondence, information about the other people in that correspondence may also be available to it. That creates a difference between the user who grants access and the people whose words or personal details appear in the connected accounts.
For readers, the practical concern is that a message sent to a friend or relative may become part of that person’s AI-assisted search or summary if their agent can reach it. The available reporting does not establish that every message is routinely read or retained, or that every person mentioned receives a profile. It does show why connector permissions, memory controls and deletion language matter beyond the account holder.
The commercial backdrop is relevant but does not establish a direct link to any particular privacy practice. The source reports that Meta sold $25 billion in stock at $625 a share, alongside $12.5 billion in preferred stock, and that Nvidia, a supplier of chips Meta plans to use for Muse, is investing $3 billion. Those figures indicate substantial investment around the service, not evidence that funding terms dictate how messages are handled.
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How Muse Gets Its Connections
Meta describes Muse as a personal agent that runs on a cloud-based computer called a Muse Secure VM. The company says one user’s agent cannot access another user’s VM. That separation does not answer what information an individual agent can receive from apps its owner has connected, or what information about other people may be derived from it.
Meta launched Muse in the United States on September 8, 2026, according to the source material. Japan followed on October 23, and Meta announced its Singapore expansion on October 27. TIME reported more than 5 million downloads within weeks; that figure is TIME’s report, not a current independently verified count in the material provided.
Meta’s controls include disconnecting connectors, turning off model training, editing a memory file and resetting the agent. The source says model training is on by default. Meta’s help information cautions that Muse may remember information it learned even after a user deletes the original item, and describes forgetting as happening “to the best of its ability.” These controls are available to the Muse user, while people whose messages appear in another person’s account may have fewer direct options.
“They’re trying to know you like a friend, which is honestly pretty creepy.”
— Karan Joshi, security researcher, speaking to WIRED
What the Reports Do Not Settle
The reporting does not establish how often Muse uses each connected source, which message contents are retained in a profile, or how long those records persist. It also does not make clear whether the hourly refresh applies to every account or only under particular settings or tasks. Meta’s public descriptions of the connectors do not spell out the exact scope of access to Instagram direct messages and Messenger.
Meta’s statement that users decide what access Muse gets does not answer what remedies people who are mentioned in those users’ communications have. The source says WhatsApp’s Advanced Chat Privacy can limit some information in other people’s archives, but it does not provide a full account of what that feature blocks or whether similar protections apply across Meta’s other services. Meta has not, in the material provided, explained whether a person can inspect or remove a profile held in someone else’s Muse.
The supplied account of Meta’s deletion guidance ends mid-sentence. It reports that Muse may retain learned information after the original content is deleted, but does not include the complete policy language or specify how a user can verify that a derived memory has been removed. Those details should not be inferred from the partial quotation.
Details Needed From Meta
The next useful disclosures would be a clearer account of what each connector can access, when information is processed, how long derived memories are kept, and what deletion means for information learned from a message. Meta could also clarify whether people who do not use Muse can see or challenge records about them, and whether hourly updates are universal or conditional.
For current Muse users, Meta’s stated controls offer immediate steps: review connected services, disconnect those not needed, check the memory file, consider turning off model training, and reset the agent if appropriate. People who do not use Muse have fewer direct controls over another person’s account; the source identifies WhatsApp’s Advanced Chat Privacy as one possible way to limit what is kept in other users’ archives. The effect of that setting should be checked against Meta’s current help information.
Meta’s expansion into Singapore makes the questions relevant to a larger user base, while further policy detail or independent reporting may establish how the reported profile instructions operate in practice. Until then, the confirmed distinction is between the account holder’s control of Muse and the unresolved protections for other people whose information the agent may encounter.
Key Questions
Can Muse access messages from people who do not use it?
It may encounter information about non-users when a Muse user connects an account containing their correspondence. WIRED and TIME reported that Muse’s instructions call for profiles of people mentioned in users’ communications. The available material does not establish that every message is read or that every person mentioned is profiled.
Does Muse automatically connect to Instagram?
Meta says Facebook, Instagram and Threads connect automatically when they share an Accounts Center with Muse. Meta chief AI officer Alexandr Wang said the Instagram connector includes direct messages, though Meta’s help pages, as described in the source material, do not fully document the connector’s scope.
Does opening Muse in WhatsApp let it read other WhatsApp chats?
The source describes Muse in WhatsApp as a chat the user opens, not as a reader of that user’s other WhatsApp chats. It does not provide a full technical explanation of the feature or its data handling.
What can a Muse user do to limit access?
Meta’s stated controls include disconnecting connectors, turning off model training, editing the agent’s memory file and resetting Muse. Users should review Meta’s current settings and help pages, since connector options and controls may change.
Can a non-user delete a profile Muse may have made about them?
The source material does not identify a direct way for a non-user to inspect or delete a profile held in another person’s Muse. Meta has not explained that process in the material provided. Some app-level privacy controls may limit what is retained in other people’s archives, but their exact effect is not detailed here.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
