WhatsApp Adds Meta AI Chats That Are Built to Be Fully Private

WhatsApp said on Wednesday it is launching an AI chat function known as Incognito Chat that is built to allow users to converse privately with Meta AI—such that Meta itself cannot access the questions or answers. The feature is based on WhatsApp's Private Processing scheme, which debuted a year ago and already underlies WhatsApp's existing AI features, including message summarization and composition tools.

The idea of Incognito Chat is to create a way for WhatsApp to offer AI chat integration that does not conflict with the communication platform's commitment to end-to-end encryption, the privacy scheme in which only direct participants in a conversation can read messages or hear a call. Most generative AI platforms now offer some type of “incognito mode,” but these features are usually designed to separate users from the questions they ask and the answers they receive rather than including a mechanism to ...