Facebook pivots strategy to compete with TikTok

Facebook is gearing up for a major overhaul in its ongoing battle to retain users who are increasingly gravitating toward rivals like TikTok. The platform’s head, Tom Alison, announced that later this year, Facebook will begin testing a “reimagined experience” that greets select users with a full-screen video format the instant they open the app. This shift sounds strikingly like an attempt to mimic TikTok’s core interface, raising questions about originality in the social media space.

Meta has not released visual examples of what this experimental interface will look like. The initial rollout will target countries where video content is particularly popular, with a potential expansion to the United States planned for 2027. The decision stems from Facebook’s observation that video is driving conversations, community building, and even commerce on its platform, putting the company’s flagship social network at risk of losing relevance. While Meta does not disclose platform-specific user numbers, its own data shows a collective loss of 20 million users across its services in the first quarter of 2026.

Despite still being the most popular social platform globally, Facebook faces stiff competition. YouTube ranks second, and TikTok is close behind, having surpassed 1 billion monthly active users just three years after its launch,a milestone Facebook took much longer to reach. Meta already introduced Reels on Instagram in 2020 to counter TikTok, and now it is applying a similar strategy to Facebook. This marks a notable shift from Alison’s 2022 statement to The Verge, where he claimed he saw “TikTok chasing Facebook,” rather than the reverse.

Over the years, Facebook has evolved into a cluttered mix of social and commerce features, and it continues to borrow ideas from competitors to enhance user experiences. Today, Meta is launching Seller, a dedicated app for Marketplace sellers that functions like a Craigslist-style platform, allowing users to track performance, manage listings, and communicate with buyers. Earlier this year, Facebook also introduced Forum, an app designed for interacting with Facebook Groups, similar to subreddit communities on Reddit.

Changes are also coming to Facebook’s verification badges. Previously, these required a paid Meta Verified subscription starting at $11.99 per month. Now, Facebook is offering a free verified badge that users can obtain through a simple selfie verification process. The goal is to help users confirm that a profile is linked to a real person, boosting trust and authenticity on the platform.