Building on the launch of chatbots on Messenger at F8 last year, Facebook announced the new Discover tab, to find recently used bots, popular "experiences" and search for businesses. Facebook said it aims to combine a phone directory and Yellow Pages to help Messenger users find relevant contacts and businesses. Developers can apply to have their bot in the curated tab, which has started rolling out to users in the US.
Other new Messenger features to connect businesses include QR codes at physical sites to connect to bots, chat extensions for group conversations with business bots and 'Smart Replies' for businesses to send automated responses to common questions.
For Facebook users with a VR headset, the social network introduced Facebook Spaces, a new virtual reality meeting space for Facebook contacts. The app is initially available in beta for the Oculus Rift and Touch. Users can choose a photo from their Facebook profile to create their customised VR identity in Spaces and then invite contacts to chat with them, watch 360 videos or create drawings. A built-in selfie stick allows users to record images of their experience.
Facebook also signalled plans to expand more in cameras and photos, introducing its Camera Effects Platform for the recently introduced in-app camera on Facebook. The platform includes the Frames Studio, an online creative editor to create picture frames that can be used on profile pictures or in the new camera. The other element is AR Studio, now open for beta applications. It can be used to create masks, scripted effects, animated frames and other AR technologies that react to movement, the environment or interactions during Live videos.
