Instagram, YouTube and pretty much every other social media platform have been copying TikTok for a while, trying to capture some of the magic that makes that platform so popular.

However, in an unexpected plot twist, it would seem TikTok has taken some inspiration from Instagram with its new "Photo Mode" feature.

The new feature allows users to share a photo, or multiple photos, with a caption of up to 2,200 characters.

The new posts will appear on the For You page alongside the usual vertical video content. In pretty much the same way that Instagram posts appear alongside Reels.

Something that's a little more unique, though, is that photo posts can feature music. We can already imagine the extra layer this will add to image-based memes.

Speaking of which, some users aren't too pleased with this change, as they feel it encourages the reposting of images and text-based memes. This is something that's more popular on Instagram, whereas TikTok is typically focused on generating original content.

In a blog post, TikTok is more optimistic about the creativity this tool will unlock, it said the new format will allow users "to express themselves and more deeply connect with others."

Of course, social media platforms copying each other is nothing new, but it's interesting to see TikTok taking inspiration from Instagram. The platform has been aggressively pushing its TikTok clone, Reels, but still seems to be struggling with monetisation.

Meanwhile, Snapchat, TikTok and Instagram have all been working on their own BeReal clones, with the latter yet to launch. Seems it won't be long until all platforms offer the exact same feature set.