Meta Andromeda and ad creative

What is Meta Andromeda?

Meta Andromeda is the machine learning system Meta uses for ads retrieval, the first step of choosing which ad a person sees. According to Meta's engineering post, retrieval narrows tens of millions of ad candidates down to a few thousand for later ranking.

Andromeda does not pick the winning ad. Ranking models score the shortlist after retrieval. Jon Loomer puts it the same way in his guide to Andromeda: Andromeda picks the shortlist; it does not rank the ads.

The engineering post describes the system in technical terms:

• A deep neural network built for NVIDIA Grace Hopper hardware and Meta's own MTIA chips.
• A hierarchical ad index trained together with the retrieval models.
• A reported 10,000x increase in model capacity for personalization.
• Reported results of +6% recall in retrieval and +8% ads quality on selected segments.

For a brand, the practical point is narrower. Andromeda can consider far more ads per person than before, so the number and range of ads you upload matter more.

What does Meta say about Andromeda and creative?

Meta says Andromeda exists partly because creative volume is growing, and it tells advertisers to diversify creative. The engineering post says the number of ad creatives is expected to grow significantly as generative AI tools spread, and presents Andromeda as the way to handle that growth.

Three Meta pages connect Andromeda to creative. Each says something slightly different.

The 22 Apr 2025 post is the most direct. Meta defines creative diversification there as a wide range of ad creatives with different themes, messages and visuals for different audience segments. It also says diversification can surface audiences an advertiser had not considered.

Meta's Performance 5 page carries the same advice under the heading "Diversify ad creative". It does not mention Andromeda.

How many creatives does Meta Andromeda need?

Meta's Andromeda pages give no number of creatives. None of the three posts above sets a minimum, a maximum or a count per ad set.

One older Meta post does give a number, and it is often quoted as Andromeda advice. Meta's 19 Nov 2024 post on creative diversification recommends at least 20 diversified ads in Advantage+ shopping campaigns and 20–30% of ad budget for testing new ads. That post does not mention Andromeda, and it is scoped to Advantage+ shopping campaigns.

The 22 Apr 2025 post includes a case study of an advertiser that went from 3–4 new creatives a week to almost 50, with steady performance. That is one advertiser's result reported by Meta, not a target.

Practitioners are cautious about volume. Jon Loomer writes in his creative diversification post that many advertisers now run 10, 20 or more ads per ad set, but that more is not necessarily better. In his main Andromeda guide he says Meta removed an older recommendation of no more than six ads per ad set, and that 50 ads do not guarantee results. Both are his statements, not Meta's.

What this means in practice:

• There is no Meta number to hit for Andromeda.
• The one Meta number (20 diversified ads) applies to Advantage+ shopping campaigns and predates the Andromeda posts.
• Volume only helps if the ads differ in ways Meta's system can see.

Is there an Andromeda similarity score?

No Meta page checked on 12 Oct 2026 describes a similarity score or an "Entity ID" for Andromeda. These terms come from agency and vendor blogs.

For example, a ChatterBuzz Media guide says Ads Manager shows a Creative Similarity Score and that ads above 60% similarity are merged into one Entity ID. The page gives no source for the threshold or the mechanism. Treat it as that site's claim.

Meta does say something about similar ads, on its creative differentiation page:

• When creative is too similar, Meta's system may not recognize it as different.
• Similar creative can reach the same audiences, which limits reach.
• It can lead to a "Creative limited" or "Creative fatigue" status in Ads Manager.

The page does not mention Andromeda and gives no percentage. The safe reading: near-copies of one ad add little, and Meta may treat them as one idea.

What does creative diversification mean in practice?

Creative diversification means ads that differ in theme, message and visuals, so each one can reach a different group of people. Meta's 19 Nov 2024 post adds personas, formats and creators as the levers.

Here is how those levers turn into decisions in a brief. The left column uses Meta's terms; the right column is what changes on set or in the edit.

Meta's 19 Nov 2024 post gives its own examples: value or deal messages for younger shoppers, and reviews and demonstrations for older shoppers. It recommends building personas around different needs and purchase blockers.

What counts as a different ad, and what doesn't?

An ad counts as different when a viewer would describe it differently. Jon Loomer's test is that variations should look noticeably different; if they don't, he expects little impact on performance.

Changes that usually produce a different ad:

• A new angle (a different reason to buy).
• A new format (UGC to podcast, drama or animation).
• A new person on screen, with a different persona in the script.
• A new setting and a new opening shot.

Changes that usually produce a near-copy:

• A new background colour or font on the same video.
• A different call-to-action button with the same video.
• The same script read by a similar-looking person in a similar room.
• A trimmed version of the same edit.

Near-copies still have a job. Use them to test one variable inside a creative testing framework, not to add range.

How should brands change their creative process for Andromeda?

Meta's advice is to launch new ads every week, review performance with the creative team, and brief the next batch from what you learn. Those are the three steps in its 19 Nov 2024 post.

Meta's three steps, paraphrased:

1. Launch new ads every week. Meta says the leaders in creative diversification launch new ads weekly; smaller teams can launch on their own schedule.
2. Analyse performance and write the brief. Hold a weekly meeting with media buyers and creative teams. The brief covers what is working, a new opportunity or audience, and a creative direction.
3. Make new ads with creators and AI tools. Meta suggests multiple diverse variants rather than one perfect ad, partnership ads with creators, and its generative AI tools for copy variations.

The 22 Apr 2025 post adds one point: keep creative production close to media buying, so testing moves faster.

A weekly loop for a brand team:

How does "every format from one script" fit Andromeda?

Remaking one proven script in several formats is a direct way to add variety without losing what already works. The angle stays; the person, the setting and the format change, so each version looks and sounds different.

This is how Anglr works for brands: every format from one script. Anglr can run a full analysis of the brand and write the briefs, and brands that already have winning ads start from those winners. AI creators and agencies then remake each script as UGC, podcast, drama, animation and brand film.

Videos arrive daily, on a rolling basis. Every video goes through QC and compliance review before it goes live. The method is set out in one script, every format.

The reason it suits Andromeda follows from Meta's wording. A podcast-style clip and a talking-head UGC ad built on the same angle differ in theme, visuals and person on screen, which is what Meta's diversification definition asks for. Two talking-head ads with different captions do not.

What doesn't Andromeda change?

Andromeda changes retrieval; it does not change what makes an individual ad work. A shortlisted ad still has to win in ranking and then hold attention and convert.

Things that stay the same:

• The ad still needs a hook, a product moment and a call to action. Retrieval only gets an ad considered.
• Policy and claims rules are unchanged. Meta's ad standards and labelling rules still apply; see AI ad labels on Meta and TikTok for the AI-specific rules.
• Measurement is unchanged. Judge ads on cost per result, hook rate and hold rate. The hook rate calculator works from Ads Manager columns.
• Ranking is a separate system. Meta's 27 Mar 2025 post describes other models at the ranking stage, including GEM and Lattice, alongside Andromeda.

Jon Loomer's view in his Andromeda guide is that when results lag, look at the ads and the offer before blaming Andromeda. That matches Meta's own message: the input Andromeda works with is the creative you give it.