Meta's next big move: Ads are finally coming to WhatsApp

Meta Platforms has announced that advertisements will soon begin appearing within WhatsApp, marking a significant shift for the messaging service as it looks to establish new revenue streams.

The ads will be displayed exclusively in WhatsApp's 'Updates' tab—a section accessed by up to 1.5 billion users daily—and will not appear in private chat threads. WhatsApp developers emphasised that personal messaging, calls, and status updates will remain end-to-end encrypted and will not be used for ad targeting.

"The personal messaging experience on WhatsApp isn't changing," the company confirmed in a blog post, underscoring its continued commitment to privacy within one-to-one and group communications.

This development represents a major departure from the app's founding philosophy. WhatsApp was launched in 2009 by Jan Koum and Brian Acton, who had pledged to keep the platform ad-free. After Facebook acquired WhatsApp in 2014, both founders eventually exited the company, citing concerns over the app's direction.

Meta will target ads based on general user information such as age, location, language preferences, followed channels, and engagement behaviour. However, private messages, calls, and group membership will not be used for ad personalisation.

The company also announced two additional monetisation features. WhatsApp Channels will be able to charge a subscription fee for exclusive content, while businesses will have the option to pay for increased visibility of their channels to attract more users.

Meta continues to rely heavily on advertising as its primary revenue driver. In 2025, the company reported revenues of $164.5 billion, with $160.6 billion generated from advertising activities.

Sci/Tech