WhatsApp is getting an AI chatbot because of course it is
AI chatbots are slowly but surely infiltrating every app we use, and the latest one is WhatsApp. Meta is now testing the addition of the Meta AI chatbot to the messaging service, a test that"s currently going on inside the latest version of the app for both iOS and Android. Right now, the test is only available to those who have English set as their WhatsApp language.
It"s a limited test, however, which means not everyone that"s eligible can see the Meta AI chatbot in WhatsApp yet. So far, it"s gone live in select countries including India, but only to a limited number of people. This will probably change in the future, of course.
Meta AI is integrated into the search bar for some, while for others there"s also a new Meta AI icon at the top right , next to the camera button and New conversation button.
Meta AI works like any other chatbot out there, allowing you to ask it stuff. If you tap the Meta AI-enabled search bar, you"ll get a few randomly generated suggestions about what you can ask it, but of course you can use any prompt you"d like.
It will be interesting to see if WhatsApp can go one step further and integrate the chatbot into your chats, a la Skype, considering how these are end-to-end encrypted. For now, it hasn"t gone that far, limiting the implementation to the search bar.
