SAN FRANCISCO:  Social networking site Facebook is testing a virtual assistant, called 'M', nestled within its Messenger that can help users buy gifts and make restaurant reservations.

"Today (Thursday) we're beginning to test a new service called M. It is a personal digital assistant inside Messenger that completes tasks and finds information on your behalf," David Marcus, vice president of messaging products at Facebook, said.

Mr Marcus said 'M' can perform tasks that no one else can and added that unlike other virtual assistants in the market like Apple's Siri and Microsoft's Cortana, 'M' can complete tasks on behalf of the users.

"It can purchase items, get gifts delivered to your loved ones, book restaurants, travel arrangements, appointments and way more," said Mr Marcus.

He added that the project was still at a very early stage but insisted it represents a major step forward in helping Messenger users have "more time to focus on what's important in their lives".

Facebook Messenger is used by more than 700 million people worldwide.

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