Don't be surprised when you eventually see a new rocketship tab in your Facebook app.
The tab is essentially a second News Feed, except without any posts or baby pictures from your friends. Instead, Facebook is using the tab to only show recommended videos and articles based on what you already like and watch in your main News Feed.
Facebook has been quietly testing the new tab in different parts of the world for the past several weeks, a company spokesperson told Business Insider.
"We are testing a complementary feed of popular articles, videos, and photos, customized for each person based on content that might be interesting to them," the spokesperson said. "We've heard from people that they want an easy way to explore new content they haven't connected with yet."
Facebook frequently tests changes to its apps that are never rolled out to all of its 1.8 billion users. But now that more people, including those in the US, are starting to see the rocketship tab, Facebook appears close to making the feature available to everyone.
Creating a second News Feed could help Facebook overcome a looming threat to its ad business. The company has warned that it's nearing the limit of ads it can stuff into the News Feed, and this new tab could let it show more ads in videos and between stories.
Facebook's new 🚀 feed pic.twitter.com/PJIIh6IMEN
- Ryan Hoover (@rrhoover) April 2, 2017