Instagram is currently experimenting with a new feature designed to help you catch up on content from your friends that you might have overlooked. This involves showcasing unseen Story Highlights from mutual followers at the end of the Stories tray—the section at the top of your feed where all your friends’ Stories are displayed.
According to a Meta representative, they are always exploring innovative ways to enhance connection through Stories, and this update is part of a test with a limited audience. The existence of this feature was initially brought to attention by social media expert Ahmed Ghanem.
With Instagram’s interface increasingly filled with Reels and sponsored posts, it’s become easier to miss updates from the people you follow. This latest feature aims to ensure that you don’t overlook any engaging content from your friends and family by highlighting Story Highlights.
Meta explains that users will be able to view Story Highlights they haven’t seen from the past week. However, these Highlights will only appear if you’ve already viewed all current Stories in the tray. If you have a long list of followed accounts and don’t always make it through all the Stories, you might miss these Highlights.
Importantly, this function won’t show the regular Stories that vanish after 24 hours. Instead, it focuses on Story Highlights, which are the handpicked Stories users opt to save on their profiles.
