Instagram GIFs go missing for some users again; Reels Auto-Scroll expands to wider audience

The Instagram community is facing a familiar headache, as the platform’s “missing GIFs” glitch has resurfaced to plague a fresh wave of accounts. While some users are finding their reaction options replaced by a library of bizarre, generic stickers, others are seeing a major functional change: the wider rollout of Auto-Scroll for Reels.

If your GIF game has felt a little off lately, you’re not alone. We’re seeing a flood of reports on Reddit and X from users whose GIF options have been swapped out for what one user called “ugly sh*t”.

Another user complained, “Why are all my gifs now stickers?”, while others noted the selection has “completely devolved”. Instead of the vast GIPHY library of pop culture moments, users are seeing a limited set of bland, cartoonish animations.​

This isn’t the first time this has happened. We covered the exact same bug on our sister site Tech Issues Today back in June, when GIFs first vanished for a wide swath of users. They did eventually return after a couple of weeks, but as we reported then, they came back with a catch: a small, “boring collection” that lacked the usual pop culture flair. It seems the bug, or a version of it, is back again.​

In my brief testing, GIFs work just fine for my account on Instagram. I can search and use them in DMs and Stories on both Android and iOS devices. So much like earlier this year, not everyone has lost access to GIFs.

On a less frustrating note, Instagram’s Auto-Scroll feature for Reels appears to be reaching a much wider audience. I first noticed the feature pop up on my iOS app about a month ago, and it just recently appeared on my Android device. When you finish a Reel, it automatically goes to the next Reel without any input needed from your end.

So you can literally put your phone down or in a holder and just sit back and watch Reels for hours (not that I recommend doing that).

Users have had mixed reactions. Some are all for it, with one person on X saying, “Instagram got auto scroll before TikTok.” Others are less impressed, with one user noting their “attention span is so low that Instagram’s auto scroll feels too slow.” This feature was first spotted in testing earlier this year, with reports in July indicating that Instagram was experimenting with auto-scrolling for posts in the main feed.

All this comes at the same time as Instagram’s wider release of its Reels-first UI, which as expected, is receiving plently of backlash from users.

It’s clear that Instagram wants to keep you watching. By making content consumption more passive, it brings the Reels experience closer to its biggest competitor, TikTok, and is designed to increase the time you spend in the app. That said, let’s hope the platform can also focus on keeping other aspects, like GIFs, working smoothly for everyone too.