WhatsApp is getting a big update soon, the largest one so far. Right now, this update is being tried out by some iPhone testers. WhatsApp plans to roll out this update for everyone by March 2024.
The reason behind this is a rule from the EU, telling companies like WhatsApp to allow chatting with people on other apps.
This way, even if someone doesn’t use WhatsApp, they can still send messages to people who do. The company has been working on this for a while, and by March, everyone should have it.
According to the EU’s Digital Markets Act, big social media companies, considered as key players, must let users chat with others on different apps.
This is called interoperability. To make it simple, even if you don’t use WhatsApp, you can message people who do from other apps like Signal. These messages will show up in a special folder in WhatsApp.
It’s important to know that the interoperability feature is something you can choose to use or not. If you don’t want messages from other apps, you can opt-out. All messages sent this way will be private between you and the person you’re chatting with.
This info comes from Wabetainfo, a website that tracks WhatsApp development. Right now, only iPhone users can try it, but soon it will be available for Android too.
WhatsApp is also working on other changes, like letting you change your username and improving the look of the app, which you’ll see in the future.
