WhatsApp is a part of the Meta family. The app was purchased back in 2014, and has since become the most popular chatting app in the world, having over 2 billion monthly users. A new WhatsApp update features Meta AI in the search bar, where users can ask questions through text or voice. The service can also be accessed by starting a chat with @Meta AI or mentioning it in your group chats.
Meta AI has standard AI chatbot features, similar to ChatGPT, allowing users to generate images, provide a summary of texts, and more.
Meta guarantees your conversations are still protected and encrypted and that Meta AI can only read your texts when you address it directly.
Why can't you deactivate it?
AI remains a scary prospect for many, but the technology is here to stay. WhatsApp has made it unable for users to deactivate Meta AI; the feature is an integration, not an addition. Still, this is difficult to swallow for many users, who may not want Meta to have access to their texts.
It's important to know that, as of this writing, the only messages that Meta has access to are the ones directly addressed to the AI. So if you steer clear of its usage, you should be fine.
Another reason why you won't be able to eliminate Meta AI from your app is the fact that the company wants to remain competitive in the AI space. It's currently involved in an AI race against companies like Google (Gemini), OpenAI (ChatGPT), and Microsoft (Copilot).
Meta AI isn't their first foray into AI; the company has also invested in AI sunglasses with Ray-Ban and in Augmented Reality.
How to minimize it
While there's no direct way of eliminating it from your phone, there are a few things you can do to minimize its impact on your daily chats. You can ignore it completely, eliminate or archive the Meta AI chat, and silence your notifications.
If you're a group chat and someone addresses Meta AI, simply steer clear of addressing the AI yourself.