December 2025 Social Platform Updates

Welcome to the final 2025 edition of The Social Navigator, your go-to briefing for the most important social media updates, insights, and trends.

As the year wraps up and platforms roll out end-of-year features, algorithm changes, and emerging trends to watch in 2026, we’re here to help you cut through the noise and put a nice bow on ‘25.

Let’s go exploring.

Australia 🇦🇺

✦ Australia becomes the first nation to ban social media for users aged 16 and younger.

Facebook 👍

✦ Facebook announced a new batch of feed and algorithm updates designed to connect users with what interests them.

✦ Facebook launched a holiday gift showcase in Marketplace.

✦ Facebook is running a test that limits some professional profiles and Pages to publishing two organic posts with external links per month unless they pay for Meta Verified.

Instagram 📷

✦ Leaked documents reveal a multi-year internal plan to boost teen activity on Instagram to compete with rivals like TikTok and YouTube.

✦ Instagram implements restrictions on hashtag usage.

✦ Instagram is letting you reshare public Stories.

✦ Instagram is testing early access Reels to help creators boost follower numbers.

LinkedIn 🤝

✦ LinkedIn introduced new perks for Premium users.

✦ LinkedIn rolled out AI-powered conversational search, letting users ask natural queries and receive refined results (e.g., skills, companies).

✦ LinkedIn reached 100m verified profiles.

✦ LinkedIn announced new ad formats.

✦ LinkedIn shares tips and tricks to improve performance.

✦ LinkedIn released its own year in review feature.

Meta ♾️

✦ Meta delivered updates to their AI glasses, including nose filtering and a Spotify integration.

✦ Meta is making it easier to get in touch with platform support.

✦ Meta is focusing on bringing more real-time news to Meta AI.

Pinterest 📌

✦ Pinterest launched a new shopping collaboration with Walmart.

✦ Pinterest acquired tvScientific, expanding ad options to CTV.

✦ Pinterest revealed the platform’s top trends heading into 2026.

Snapchat 👻

✦ Snap kicked off its “new era” of performance advertising.

✦ Snapchat released Quick Cut to improve in-app editing.

✦ Snap added a new custom AI lens.

✦ Snapchat is the latest platform to roll out an end-of-year recap with highlights from Snaps, Stories, and Chats.

TikTok ♪

✦ New data shows TikTok is the most popular social platform for news consumption for U.S. users aged 18-29.

✦ TikTok rolled out new accessibility features.

✦ TikTok teamed up with Apple Music and Mariah Carey for a Christmas concert in Las Vegas.

✦ TikTok officially launched the “Nearby feed” focused on local content and recommendations.

✦ TikTok’s US deal remains in limbo heading into 2026.

✦ TikTok is offering creators up to $1,500 for trying its UGC ad portal Branded Buzz.

✦ TikTok just added a section for microdramas, giving the bite-sized soap-style shows an official home on its platform.

X 🐦

✦ X added a new Creator Hub on mobile.

✦ X posted higher revenue than expected in Q3.

✦ X moved away from a strictly chronological “Following” feed, instead ranking posts by predicted relevance and engagement using Grok AI.

YouTube 🎥

✦ YouTube is testing image posts, Carousels in the Shorts feed.

✦ YouTube allows users to access Nano Banana image creator.

✦ YouTube is testing AI chatbots based on famous people and popular creators.

✦ YouTube expands access to A/B testing for video titles.

Others 📝

✦ Substack launched a pilot program matching a small group of its newsletter writers to brands for deals. During the testing phase, Substack will not take a cut of these sponsorships.

✦ Twitch adds (and swiftly removes) a feature that lets viewers gift 1,000 subscriptions at once.

✦ Discord launched Checkpoint 2025, its first personalized year-end recap experience.

✦ Reddit phased out the traditional r/popular feed from homepages for new users, shifting to a more personalized experience tailored to individual interests.

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