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WhatsApp users will soon see advertisements for the first time — slotted between friends’ disappearing photos and videos.
Meta announced Monday that ads will appear in WhatsApp’s Updates tab, where 1.5 billion people check status posts and follow channels daily. The move represents a dramatic departure from the app’s founding principles, which were originally created by its founders, who famously despised advertising.
“[The new ads] felt like the next natural evolution… And that was what we were increasingly hearing from businesses that they wanted to do as well,” said Alice Newton-Rex, WhatsApp’s VP of Product, per TechCrunch.
The ads will work similarly to Instagram Stories, appearing between status updates from contacts. Users scrolling through friends’ temporary posts will now see sponsored content from businesses trying to start conversations.
Meta insists personal chats remain untouched. The company promises that end-to-end encryption protects private messages from being used for advertising purposes.
But the targeting system tells a different story about data collection. WhatsApp will use your city, age, device language, and channel subscriptions to pick which ads appear. Even more concerning for privacy advocates: users who link their WhatsApp to Meta’s Accounts Center will have their Facebook and Instagram data mixed in for ad targeting.
“By default, we remove or alter personal information (like phone numbers) before sharing it with Meta so that Meta cannot identify you,” Meta stated in its official help documentation.
This marks WhatsApp’s biggest monetization push since Facebook acquired it for $19 billion in 2014. Until now, the app has generated an estimated $500 million to $1 billion annually through business tools—a fraction of Meta’s $160 billion ad empire.
CEO Mark Zuckerberg told investors in April that messaging “should be the next pillar of our business.” With WhatsApp’s 3 billion monthly users, including over 100 million Americans, the revenue potential is massive.
Beyond status ads, Meta is launching two additional money-making features. Businesses can now pay to promote their broadcast channels in search results. Content creators can also charge monthly subscriptions for exclusive updates, though Meta won’t take a cut until next year.
Privacy groups are already sounding alarms. The European organization NOYB warns that WhatsApp might adopt Meta’s controversial “Pay or OK” model, forcing users to either pay for ad-free service or accept extensive data tracking.
The shift contradicts WhatsApp’s founding philosophy. Co-founders Jan Koum and Brian Acton, who both left Meta after clashing over advertising plans, built WhatsApp specifically as an ad-free alternative to other messaging platforms.
For users who stick to private messaging, the changes remain invisible. However, as Meta expands its presence in commerce and discovery features, the distinction between WhatsApp and its ad-heavy siblings becomes increasingly blurred.
The ads are set to begin rolling out globally this month, marking the end of WhatsApp’s 16-year run as the last major social platform without advertising.
