TikTok Unveils Photo Feature as Instagram Rivalry Heats Up

TikTok on Thursday introduced a feature called photo mode where users can post photos in an automatically-scrolling carousel that allows up to 35 images. TikTok’s main For You Page, its algorithmically driven content feed, will display the photos alongside its flagship short-form videos.

Previously, TikTok only allowed users to post photos when they were stitched together as short videos. An in-app editing tool allowed users to upload photos and automatically turn them into a video. This new feature eliminates the need for those clunky videos. It will also let creators pick music to overlay on these photo carousels.

The new feature looks similar to Instagram posts, in which a user can select up to 10 slides per post. The new feature is direct competition to Instagram, which both creators and their audiences still use to post photos and disappearing Stories. Instagram has been trying to lure more creators and their fans with its short-form video feature Reels, but it’s struggled to catch up to TikTok’s lead.