Skip to main content

Everything you need to know about Facebook Messenger’s M assistant

Facebook's M assistant can now suggest movies thanks to Fandango

facebook m beta discontinued
Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends
Notice a little “M” logo near the textbox in Facebook Messenger? It’s the social media network’s artificially intelligent assistant that’s meant to offer suggestions in your conversations — similar to how Google Assistant can jump in to help in conversations via Allo. With the assistant officially rolled out across the U.S., it is now available in both English and Spanish to all Messenger users in the country.

M is now able to provide suggestions in Spanish — like sending payments or sharing your location — and the feature is gradually rolling out in Mexico for iOS and Android, Facebook told Digital Trends. If you’d like to receive M Suggestions in Spanish, you can change the preferred language to Spanish.

M itself is powered by Facebook-built AI, and so far works by popping up in your chats when it detects that it can help with something. For example, if you mention going somewhere, M can detect this and will offer up a quick way to book a ride with Uber or Lyft (you can set your preference) — all without leaving the Messenger app.

Before diving into what Facebook’s M can do, there are a few things to keep in mind. Most importantly, Facebook is still working on M and it’s likely the assistant will evolve a lot over the next few months and years. It will also roll out globally at some point as Facebook says users across the globe will “start seeing a redesigned way to compose messages.” If you want nothing to do with this AI revolution, or if you think M makes your conversations too cluttered, you can mute it by heading to Messenger’s settings — tap on the person icon on the top-right of Messenger’s main page, then tap M settings and toggle Suggestions off.

A lot of M’s functions are available in Facebook Messenger — simply tap on the “+” icon on the left, and you’ll be able to share your location, book a ride, plan an event, and more. All M does is take away an extra step, and it reminds you these features exist in Messenger. If M has indeed caught your eye, here’s a list of all the ways it can currently help in your conversations.

M suggestions

Image used with permission by copyright holder

With Facebook’s latest update, M will proactively make suggestions, including for GIFs, quick responses, and movies. Previously, M suggested that you save your content from within Messenger conversations, allowing you to easily read, watch, or share content with other friends. But now, in addition to suggesting URLs, videos, pages, and other internal Facebook content, the bot will also help you jazz up your exchanges.

With GIF suggestions, anytime you type in a phrase like, “Hello” or “See you later,” a GIF picker bar will show you moving images that could be used instead. After all, why say something with words when you can say it with a live picture? M will also now make suggestions to help you quickly reply to a message, which could save you precious seconds if you’re jumping from conversation to conversation.

Then, there’s M’s new Fandango chat extension, which is a bit creepy in that it “listens” to conversations with your friends, and will suggest nearby showtimes and theaters if it notes that you’ve been chatting (in Messenger) about a film. You can even buy tickets directly within Messenger.

“Moviegoing is inherently social, and we’ve been working with Facebook for several years on social innovations around movie discovery, planning and ticket buying,” Fandango president Paul Yanover said in a statement. “This is another great example of how we’re connecting fans with movies in the natural social environments where they are already discussing movies.”

The service will also suggest other things. For example, if you’re chatting with someone who is celebrating their birthday, M will suggest you send them a note or sticker.

Last, but not least, is voice or video calls. If M detects that someone expresses interest in a call, M will suggest a voice or video call within Messenger — and all you’ll have to do is tap a button to initiate that call.

Stickers

Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends

Facebook’s M can help make using stickers a little easier, preventing the need to search through them. During your chats, M may suggest stickers relating to whatever you’re talking about. For example, if someone says goodbye, you may see a group of stickers depicting “goodbye,” like the image above. You can swipe left or right to hide these suggestions.

Location sharing

Image used with permission by copyright holder

During a conversation, it might be appropriate to share your location with the other person in the chat. If you’re meeting up with a friend who asks where you are, M will suggest you share your location. It’s not hard to share your location without M, too. Tap the “+” icon on the left and scroll to Location. You can share your real-time location for 60 minutes.

Settings reminders

Your phone probably has a way to set reminders, such as with Siri on iOS or Google Assistant on Android. Reminders with M will involve others, such as when a significant other or friend asks you to remind them of something. These are not location-based reminders, sadly, but just time-based.

Sending and requesting money

It has been possible to send money to friends with Messenger for a while, but M makes it easy. If someone mentions sending or requesting money, M will ask members of the conversation if they want to follow through. It’s really pretty easy to use — but you will have to enter your payment information first. You can store your payment information beforehand by heading into Messenger’s settings and scrolling to Payments.

Planning Events

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Facebook M can also help you plan out events. Perhaps the easiest way that it does so is by looking for things like restaurants nearby — so if the assistant sees you planning to meet up with a friend, it will let you create an event with a name, date, and time.

Hail a ride

Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends
Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends

Along with helping you plan where you want to go, M can help you get there too. When you’re planning to meet up with a friend to go somewhere, M will suggest you book an Uber or Lyft, and it will help you through the booking process — you never have to leave Messenger.

Starting a poll

Last but not least is the ability to start a poll, however this option is only available in a group chat. If you’re asking a question in a group chat, for example, M might suggest a poll to more easily gather information.

Update: M now makes suggestions for movies thanks to a Fandango partnership. 

Editors' Recommendations

Christian de Looper
Christian’s interest in technology began as a child in Australia, when he stumbled upon a computer at a garage sale that he…
Apple Watch Series 7: Everything you need to know about the latest smartwatch
Apple Watch Series 7

The new Apple Watch Series 7 is now available, and we're putting it through its paces for our review. While the Apple Watch Series 7 doesn't feature a major redesign, it has a larger display with a curved edge and some beautiful new models and finishes. If you're thinking about ordering, here's everything you need to know.

Apple Watch Series 7 release date and price
The Apple Watch Series 7 became available to order starting on October 8, so you can order one now. It will be available in stores on October 15. The price starts at $399, the same as the outgoing Series 6. Apple will continue to sell the Apple Watch SE for $279 and the Apple Watch Series 3 starting at $199, though we strongly advise against buying the Series 3 at this point.
Ordering the Apple Watch Series 7
If you plan to order an Apple Watch, Apple's online store is the best place. Customers ordering from Apple have access to the exclusive Solo Loop and Braided Solo Loop stretchable silicone bands, and they can choose their preferred case and band combination, so their watch will be perfectly suited to their tastes right out of the box.
Apple Watch Series 7 design
The Apple Watch Series 7 doesn't have the redesign that was hinted at in the leaks -- remember, leaks aren't always accurate -- but it does have some subtle changes. The Retina screen is 20% larger than on the Series 6, with a 1.7mm bezel that's 40% thinner than before. The visual change comes from a 2.5D curve around the screen, so it cascades over the edge of the body and is covered in a crack-resistant crystal that's thicker for increased durability.

Read more
Instagram’s newest feature will let you know when it does go down
Instagram login screen.

Instagram (and other Facebook services) suffered an extended outage last week that lasted multiple hours and briefly caused chaos across the internet, particularly in developing countries. Today, the company announced an update coming to its mobile app, letting users know when an outage is experienced.

This test is a U.S.-only one for the most part, and Facebook isn't making any promises that it'll make it permanent, only that it'll be evaluating the results and see if it makes sense to expand it in the future.

Read more
Everything you need to know about iCloud+
Person using iPhone and MacBook.

Apple's iCloud subscribers are about to get a huge bargain with the new iCloud+ (pronounced "iCloud Plus") subscription, available when iOS 15 releases this fall. It represents a huge expansion of the current iCloud premium service at no extra charge, with new privacy features at its core.

Apple's iCloud -- successor to iTools, .Mac, and MobileMe -- was set up as a cohesive group of cloud services to secure and sync your content and apps across all your devices. This makes all your photos, files, notes, contacts, and reminders available no matter where you are by signing in from a supported web browser. The default free iCloud offers only 5GB of online storage for free, but its various paid subscription plans allow you to add storage and other valuable services for a fee.

Read more