- WhatsApp -Odate rolls out new meta ai chatbot in several countries
- It is represented by a small blue circle in chats and is also in chat search
- Many WhatsApp users are not happy that the feature is not removable
If you have wondered what the mysterious new blue, purple and green ring symbol in WhatsApp is, you are not alone – and this wider roll -out of Meta AI in the messaging app shows, to say the least, controversial.
The new circle or ring in the lower right corner of your chats is a shortcut to Meta’s AI-Chatbot, effectively its takeover of chatgpt. The feature rolled out in the US and Canada some time ago, but it has recently begun to arrive in countries across the EU, including Britain and Australia.
Because the EU is something of a heart country for WhatsApp, where the total number of users eclips them in the United States, the feature is back in the limelight – and it does not turn out very popular, according to various Reddit threads.
The biggest complaint is that there is no way to turn off Meta Ai. It sits prominently in your chat department, looks like a bug and has also now been conveniently integrated into the chat search bar that says “Ask Meta AI or Search.”
Of course, it raises concerns about privacy, although Meta has been eager to tackle them on its help pages. It says “your personal messages with friends and family are out of bounds” and that although “AIS can read what is shared with them,” remains your “personal messages end-to-end encrypted.”
That said, your chats with Meta AI are not encrypted and Meta says, “Don’t send messages to Meta with information you don’t want it to know.”
If you happen to chat with Meta AI, intentionally or not, the best option is to delete the chat afterwards. You can do this by going to the chat, pushing left onto it, tapping ‘more’ and beating ‘delete chat’.
Analysis: Get used to it, or prepare to jump ship
Despite some vocal online protests, it’s pretty clear that Meta AI doesn’t go anywhere in WhatsApp. At last year’s Meta Connect 2024, Mark Zuckerberg boasted that Meta AI was already one of the world’s most widely used AI assistants, with nearly 500 million active users.
Meta’s ticket to increase this number is tapping on WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger. Meta AI is now based on the new Llama 4 model, which shows that Meta is eager to constantly upgrade its assistant and make it a WhatsApp Chatbot staple -whether we want it or not.
A member of the European Parliament has even raised the function of the performing vice president and commissioner, questioning whether the lack of an opportunity to remove it “adapts to EU rules.”
Maybe we will see Meta in the dock with the EU again soon.
Alongside the lack of a ‘disabled’ option, the second most important criticism of Meta AI in WhatsApp is that it is simply not very good. After deep with it in the app, I also encountered its limitations. It often misunderstands what you have asked or contradict yourself. For example, I asked if it could analyze pictures – it asked me to upload one and then said, “I can’t understand pictures yet.”
In short, Meta Ai still feels a world away from chatgpt and also starts with the disadvantage that it has been thrown in your face within other apps rather than deliberately chosen.
The solution for Irked WhatsApp users will be to tolerate it or move to alternatives as a signal – a popular choice for privacy, but one that may not be so popular with your friends.
