Meta's AI assistant Muse secretly used human contractors to make calls

Meta tested a "human concierge" service for its new personal AI assistant Muse, where human contractors secretly handled some calls made through the digital assistant. The test was disclosed to employees shortly after Muse's phone call feature launched publicly.

Since launch two weeks ago, Muse has topped US app download charts, with over 2.5 million downloads. With the phone call feature, users can direct Muse to call US businesses to book haircuts, check stock, or ask for quotes.

Internal posts show some employees raised privacy concerns about humans handling calls, warning sensitive information could be leaked to call center contractors. One employee said a call log showed a human contractor making racist remarks. A Meta Superintelligence Labs VP admitted testing contractor calls without proper disclosure was "a mistake" and said the feature was temporarily rolled back.

Tests show human-made calls can boost success rates to 95-98%, while pure AI calls have lower success rates. A Meta spokesperson said the test aimed to gather feedback to improve safety and privacy protections.