Latest news with #WABetaInfo
Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
WhatsApp to show ads in status and promote channels in new Beta update
Meta is taking a big step to make money from WhatsApp by testing new ad features and in its latest Android beta update (version 2.25.21.11), the messaging platform has introduced two new tools - ' Status Ads ' and ' Promoted Channels '. These features are now available to select beta users on Android, according to WABetaInfo. Status Ads are similar to the ads you see on Instagram Stories. Business accounts can now post sponsored content that will appear in users' Status feeds. These ads will show up between updates from friends and family but will have a clear "sponsored" label, so users can easily tell them apart from personal posts. WhatsApp is also giving users control over what they see. If someone doesn't want to see ads from a particular advertiser, they can block them, and those ads won't appear again. The second feature, Promoted Channels, will help public channels become more visible in WhatsApp's channel directory. Just like Status Ads, these promoted channels will be marked as "sponsored". When a business or creator pays to promote their channel, it will appear higher in search results, making it easier for users to find and follow them. These changes could be very useful for brands, creators, and organisations who want to grow their audience quickly. It also signals WhatsApp's serious entry into the world of advertising and creator monetisation -- something already common on platforms like Instagram and YouTube. Meta has assured that these ads won't affect users' privacy. The company says all promotional content will only be shown in public areas like Status and Channels, not in private chats. So, your personal messages will remain ad-free. Earlier, in a previous beta update (2.25.19.15), WhatsApp also started testing a feature that lets users download detailed ad activity reports. These reports show which ads were displayed, who the advertisers were, and when the ads were seen. This adds more transparency compared to traditional ad platforms
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Business Standard
2 days ago
- Business Standard
'Quick Recap' will let WhatsApp users scan unread chats in seconds: Details
Reportedly, the Quick Recap tool will let WhatsApp users catch up on unread messages across multiple chats, while keeping privacy protected through Meta's Private Processing New Delhi WhatsApp is reportedly working on a new feature called Quick Recap, which is aimed at helping users quickly catch up on unread messages across multiple chats. According to a report by WABetaInfo, Quick Recap will allow users to select up to five conversations and receive a summary of what they missed, without having to scroll through every message. The feature is currently available in the latest Android beta (version 2.25.21.12) and is expected to be released in a future update. The report stated that the feature will remain opt-in, giving users full control over whether they want to use it. Quick Recap: How it works According to the report, Quick Recap will give a better summary than the usual unread message preview. It will be helpful for users who have not checked WhatsApp in a while, as it shows the main points of conversations. This makes it easier to catch up, especially in busy group chats. The feature will be entirely optional and can be turned on in the app's settings as per users' choice. Once enabled, users will be able to tap the Quick Recap icon in the Chats tab, select up to five conversations, and receive concise recaps within seconds. However, chats protected by Advanced Chat Privacy will not be eligible for this feature. Quick Recap uses Meta's AI technology to generate summaries, but it does so while protecting user privacy through a system called Private Processing. When users request a recap, the selected message data is processed in a secure, isolated environment. This ensures that neither WhatsApp nor Meta can see the content of the messages or the summaries generated. Apart from this Quick Recap, WhatsApp is also using Private Processing for other AI-powered features that are currently under testing. This includes message summarisation of an individual or group chats and for AI-based writing suggestions.
NDTV
2 days ago
- Business
- NDTV
WhatsApp's Latest Beta Update: 'Status Ads' And 'Promoted Channels'
New Delhi: Meta is taking a big step to make money from WhatsApp by testing new ad features and in its latest Android beta update (version 2.25.21.11), the messaging platform has introduced two new tools - 'Status Ads' and 'Promoted Channels'. These features are now available to select beta users on Android, according to WABetaInfo. Status Ads are similar to the ads you see on Instagram Stories. Business accounts can now post sponsored content that will appear in users' Status feeds. These ads will show up between updates from friends and family but will have a clear "sponsored" label, so users can easily tell them apart from personal posts. WhatsApp is also giving users control over what they see. If someone doesn't want to see ads from a particular advertiser, they can block them, and those ads won't appear again. The second feature, Promoted Channels, will help public channels become more visible in WhatsApp's channel directory. Just like Status Ads, these promoted channels will be marked as "sponsored". When a business or creator pays to promote their channel, it will appear higher in search results, making it easier for users to find and follow them. These changes could be very useful for brands, creators, and organisations who want to grow their audience quickly. It also signals WhatsApp's serious entry into the world of advertising and creator monetisation -- something already common on platforms like Instagram and YouTube. Meta has assured that these ads won't affect users' privacy. The company says all promotional content will only be shown in public areas like Status and Channels, not in private chats. So, your personal messages will remain ad-free. Earlier, in a previous beta update (2.25.19.15), WhatsApp also started testing a feature that lets users download detailed ad activity reports. These reports show which ads were displayed, who the advertisers were, and when the ads were seen. This adds more transparency compared to traditional ad platforms.
India Today
2 days ago
- India Today
WhatsApp to add ‘Quick Recap' feature to summarise multiple chats at once, report says
Meta is working on bringing a slew of new AI-powered features to WhatsApp. One of these is a recap feature called Quick Recap, which will give users a quick summary of unread messages. According to WhatsApp feature tracker WABetaInfo, this feature is currently under development and was spotted in the latest beta version of WhatsApp for Android (2.25.21.12).Though the feature is not yet available to beta testers, the report suggests that Quick Recap is aimed at improving how users navigate through lengthy or multiple chat threads. The feature is reportedly being built on WhatsApp's earlier message summaries feature, which allows users to get an overview of unread messages in a single conversation. This summary feature is currently available in the back to the new Quick Recap feature, it is reportedly said to be a bit more enhanced than the summary feature. It will enable users to select up to five chats simultaneously and receive a concise, AI-generated summary of key messages from each conversation. It is said to be designed to help users save the time and effort of scrolling through endless message threads, especially after being away from the app for a to access this feature As per the screenshot of the feature shared by WABetaInfo, to access Quick Recap, users will be able to go to the Chats tab, choose multiple conversations, tap the three-dot menu in the top-right corner, and select the Quick Recap option. Once activated, Meta's in-house AI will process unread messages and produce a summarised version of what's been discussed — offering a quick and clean way to catch concerns The report notes that the Quick Recap feature is integrated with Meta's Private Processing technology, which promises a privacy-first approach that ensures user messages remain confidential even during AI processing. Meta earlier noted that its Private Processing uses end-to-end encryption, secure enclaves, and isolated computation to protect data. As a result, neither WhatsApp nor Meta can view the original messages or the generated summaries. The AI never processes readable data outside the secure enclave, safeguarding content even during feature Additionally, the report noted that this new Quick Recap feature will be completely optional for users. It will need to be enabled manually through Settings and won't be turned on by default. Any chats protected by WhatsApp's Advanced Chat Privacy settings will automatically be excluded from the availability expected soon As for availability, the Quick Recap feature is currently available only in preview via the Android beta channel. WhatsApp is expected to roll it out gradually to testers in future beta builds before releasing it more widely to all Android users.- Ends
Mint
3 days ago
- Mint
WhatsApp could soon add an AI feature to summarise your unread chats: Here's how it works
WhatsApp is bringing yet another AI-powered feature to enhance the flow of conversations and save users time. The personal messaging app will leverage Meta AI's capabilities to allow users to get a gist of their unread messages without compromising the privacy of their conversations. According to WABetaInfo, WhatsApp is looking to implement a new feature that will allow users to generate a summary of specific conversations. Unlike the existing message summaries feature, the new Quick Recap option will provide a more detailed summary of unread messages in selected chats. Quick Recap will save users from scrolling through long threads by presenting a concise overview of what has been discussed, using Meta AI's capabilities. While the Message Summaries feature worked with only one chat at a time, users will be able to summarise up to five conversations simultaneously with Quick Recap. To use it, users can select the chats they wish to summarise, tap the three dots in the top-right corner, and click on 'Quick Recap'. Similar to Message Summaries, WhatsApp will take advantage of Meta Private Processing technology, ensuring that raw data never leaves the secure enclave in a readable form. It will use encryption and isolated computation to ensure that neither WhatsApp nor Meta has access to the original text or the generated recap. This method allows WhatsApp to utilise in-house AI while prioritising user privacy and maintaining the sanctity of conversations. Quick Recap will reportedly support summarising both individual and group chats. However, chats protected under 'Advanced Chat Privacy' will not be included in Quick Recap, respecting users who have chosen to exclude AI-powered features from specific conversations. WABetaInfo spotted the Quick Recap feature in WhatsApp beta for Android version 2.25.21.12. However, even beta testers would not have access to this feature for now given that it is still in development. The feature should slowly get rolled out to beta users with the upcoming updates, followed by a stable release for Android. Currently we don't have any clarity on when/if the new feature will come to the WhatsApp iOS app.
