Awkward, TikTok’s new “photo mode” looks a lot like Instagram carousels...

TikTok may be the reigning champ of short-form video, but it looks like the platform has its sights set on more. They’ve now introduced photo mode, a carousel-style format made for sharing multiple still images in a single post.

TikTok’s new photo posts look similar to Instagram’s carousels, but they’re a bit more robust. Users can add music to soundtrack their images, and viewers can either swipe through each photo or let them scroll automatically.

Image by TikTok

For now, TikTok photos are only available on the mobile app, but that may change in the coming months.

The new format has already seen widespread adoption across the platform. But while some users’ FYPs are now inundated with Instagram-style photo dumps and recycled content, other TikTok creators are using photo mode to create platform-specific memes that take full advantage of the new feature’s capabilities.

Photo mode may present a low-stakes opportunity for video-shy social media marketers to start experimenting with TikTok content.

While we’re used to TikTok setting the pace for other social media platforms, this isn’t the first time the platform has copied a popular feature from someone else. Just last month, it introduced TikTok Now, a BeReal knockoff that attempts to capitalize on the French app’s explosive popularity.