Earlier this year, Facebook redesigned the app so it would be easier for users to browse. This year, you'll likely hear more about how Messenger plans to help people connect with their friends, as well as businesses. It also added new augmented reality effects so users could virtually 'try on' new products like makeup. In previous years, Facebook has opened up its messaging app to chatbots - computer programs designed to mimic human speech - so users could converse with businesses. Messenger, which has more than 1.3 billion users, typically has a starring role at F8. Topics include helping businesses provide better customer service, attract more clients and bolster their brand.

Nine panels about messaging are scheduled on the first day. This year's theme is a 'conversation about technology and human connection.' Messenger updatesįacebook's F8 schedule is packed with panels about the social network's messaging app. Zuckerbeg's keynote will be an opportunity for him to address those issues but also showcase new features for the social network's private spaces. Facebook is also looking at a way to let users schedule messages for deletion, say after a month or year.įacebook's focus on groups, messaging and Stories has raised questions about how the social network will moderate offensive content as it balances privacy with safety. A big one: Allowing WhatsApp, Messenger and Instagram users to send messages to one another without switching apps. 'I believe the future of communication will increasingly shift to private, encrypted services where people can be confident what they say to each other stays secure and their messages and content won't stick around forever,' Zuckerberg said in March. More Facebook users are sharing privately in groups, messaging apps and Stories, a Snapchat-like feature that lets you post photos and videos that vanish in 24 hours. Much has changed since then, and Zuckerberg said during Wednesday's earnings call he's going to share more about the company's 'privacy-focused' vision at the conference.

In 2016, Zuckerberg used F8 to outline a 10-year roadmap for Facebook. Here's what to expect at F8: Zuckerberg's keynote The company is expected to showcase new features coming to messaging, virtual reality and other products. Facebook's earnings, which came out on Wednesday, shows that around 2.7 billion people use the social network, as well as WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger each month. 'He will acknowledge he's done a lot wrong.'įacebook isn't going away anytime soon. 'He will be as humble as he can muster,' Pachter said. The 34-year-old tech mogul will also try to avoid appearing 'overconfident,' as he has in the past, Pachter says. Michael Pachter, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, says Zuckerberg could call on developers to help him make Facebook safer. (F8 will be held at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center and ends on May 1.) At stake is whether Facebook can regain the public's trust. So Zuckerberg will likely use his April 30 keynote to show the public, as well as increasingly vigilant lawmakers, that he can get the world's largest social network on the right track. Privacy and security blunders, which could result in a record-setting fine from the FTC, sparked concerns about the responsiveness and transparency of the company's leadership. The social network has been used to fuel violence, including a genocide in Myanmar. Facebook was used to run interference campaigns during the 2016 US presidential election, raising uncomfortable questions about social media's role in our lives. Facebook's mission, he says, is 'to give people the power to build community and bring the world closer together.' Devices, like its Oculus line of virtual reality headsets, would help achieve that end by making experience more immersive, as if you're with your family and friends in person.īut a long list of scandals has derailed that idealistic goal. This time around, he'll likely address its current problems. Facebook CEO and co-founder Mark Zuckerberg uses the F8 developer conference to talk about the future of his social network.

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