Meta Introduces AI-Powered Message Summaries on WhatsApp
Meta announced that WhatsApp will soon offer AI-powered summaries for unread messages. This optional feature uses Meta AI to create concise summaries of messages you haven’t read yet. Importantly, these summaries are visible only to you and not to others in your chats.
This feature builds on Meta’s existing AI technology, which was released in April. Since then, Meta has focused on developing AI capabilities that protect encryption and user privacy. “Message Summaries uses Private Processing technology, which allows Meta AI to generate a response without Meta or WhatsApp ever seeing your messages or the private summaries. No one else in the chat can see that you summarized unread messages either,” Meta explained in a blog post.
Privacy and User Control
The feature remains off by default, but WhatsApp notifies you with a small icon when it becomes available. Users can enable or disable the feature anytime through the settings menu under Settings > Chats > Private Processing. This menu also controls other AI-powered functions like writing suggestions.
So far, Meta is rolling out this update first in the U.S., supporting English only. However, the company plans to expand availability to more countries and languages later this year. Until now, Meta AI could only answer general questions or respond to tagged messages but couldn’t read message content directly.
Enhancing Chat Experience While Respecting Privacy
Meta said that this new AI stack allows WhatsApp to privately access chat context and process requests without compromising privacy. This advancement enables useful features such as summarizing conversations and suggesting text, all while keeping messages secure.
In summary, Meta’s AI-powered summaries aim to help users catch up on conversations quickly. At the same time, the company emphasizes strong privacy safeguards that prevent data exposure to Meta, WhatsApp, or other chat participants. This approach reflects Meta’s broader commitment to balancing innovation with user trust and security.
