WhatsApp breaks co-founder's promise of ‘no ads'
Meta has unveiled plans to introduce adverts on WhatsApp, breaking a promise by the messaging app's co-founder never to do so.
In a major update announced on Monday, WhatsApp said it will roll out paid advertising to its 3bn monthly users over the next few months.
The move is in direct violation of the 'no ads, no games, no gimmicks' pledge made by Meta following its $19bn (£14bn) acquisition of WhatsApp in 2014.
Jan Koum, WhatsApp's co-founder and chief executive at the time, had the mantra written on a note taped to his desk.
In a 2012 blog post entitled 'Why we don't sell ads', he wrote: 'Remember, when advertising is involved you the user are the product.'
The decision to abandon this promise risks fuelling concerns that the app is becoming more of a social media platform instead of a messaging service.
It also comes after Meta began rolling out its own artificial intelligence (AI) function within WhatsApp, allowing users to interact with a chatbot similar to ChatGPT.
Meta AI also offers AI-powered search suggestions.
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