TECH TIP: WANT TO TURN OFF META AI? YOU CAN'T, BUT THERE ARE SOME WORKAROUNDS

If you use Facebook, WhatsApp or Instagram, you've probably noticed a new character pop up answering search queries or eagerly offering tidbits of information in your feeds, with varying degrees of accuracy.

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It's Meta Al, and it's here to help, at least according to Meta Platforms' CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who calls it "the most intelligent AI assistant that you can freely use." 

The chatbot can recommend local restaurants, offer more information on something you see in a Facebook post, search for airline flights or generate images in the blink of an eye. If you're chatting with friends to plan a night out, you can invite it into your group conversation by typing @MetaAl, then ask it to recommend, say, cocktail bars.

Meta's AI tool has been integrated into chat boxes and search bars throughout the tech giant's platforms. The assistant appears, for example, at the top of your chat list on Messenger. Ask it questions about anything or to "imagine" something and it will generate a picture or animation.

As with any new technology, there are, of course, hiccups, including bizarre exchanges when the chatbots first started engaging with real people. One joined a Facebook moms' group to talk about its gifted child. Another tried to give away nonexistent items to confused members of a Buy Nothing forum.

Meta AI hasn't been universally welcomed. Here are some tips if you want to avoid using it: