Instagram executive says controversial horizontal update was an 'accident'

A controversial Instagram update that radically altered the app's user experience is already being rolled back, with the company's head admitting it was an accident.

Instagram users were surprised on Thursday to find they had to swipe horizontally to view photos on the app rather than scroll vertically, a change few felt was for the better. But only hours after the change was first unveiled, users began to report that the app had already gone back to normal.

That's because, as Instagram head Adam Mosseri soon explained on Twitter, it was just meant to be a "very small test," but it "went broad by accident." "Sorry about that," he added in another tweet. When Mosseri was asked if the feature is still coming or if it's just being tested, he replied, "Just a test."

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It remains to be seen whether Instagram will ever actually roll out the horizontal feed for good, but seeing as the negative reactions were so widespread Thursday that phrases like "Wtf Instagram" began to trend on Twitter, they'd probably be wise to reconsider.