WhatsApp AI: I don’t think I am more skilled than Mark Zuckerberg when it comes to business; far from it. The facts speak for themselves because the owner of Meta is currently the third richest man in the world, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, with a fortune of $179 billion. Starting from nothing, he created his fortune thanks to Facebook and his astuteness in bringing over 3 billion people to the platform before expanding the range with the acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp.

Despite a few missteps, such as the Cambridge Analytica scandal, the use of users’ personal data and the Metaverse flop, Zuckerberg remains one of the best examples of a self-made man. What he doesn’t always succeed in is the attempt to put a stop to his digital fences, facilitated by a number of users unmatched by any other platform. The most recent example is the integration between social media and WhatsApp, particularly with the arrival of Meta AI.

Direct integration in the app

Having been available for over a year in the United States, the chatbot has arrived in Europe with a limited version to comply with European regulations that protect the privacy of subscribers to digital services. More than the operation and usefulness of the new functionality, which replicates what all chatbots do, offering answers to questions and ideas in case of gaps, translations and transcription of texts, what struck me was the way Meta introduced the novelty in Europe.

The Menlo Park company wanted to integrate the chatbot directly into its applications, so users opened WhatsApp and found the Meta AI icon in the bottom right-hand corner of the most popular screen. It is not a very good choice, either because the symbol obscures part of the screen with the list of chats or because, in that position, it is easy to click on it by mistake. In this case, the chat with Meta AI opens instantly, forcing the user to waste time going back and displaying the list of dialogues with their contacts again.

Don’t you like Meta AI? It’s a problem

Meta’s unfortunate choice of placing the chatbot icon sparked immediate protests from users, who complained on social media and asked Zuckerberg if they could do without Meta AI. The bitter surprise was to discover that there is no possibility of deactivating the chatbot, so even if it is not used, it always remains in plain sight on the main WhatsApp screen.

In response to specific requests from various media outlets, the Californian company replied bluntly: ‘Meta AI is integrated and cannot be deactivated, but it has been designed to be activated only upon explicit request by calling it or deliberately clicking on the circular symbol’. Basically, if you like it, that’s fine, but if you don’t want it, you still have to keep it for now.

Zuckerberg must take a step backwards

The hope is that Meta will reconsider in the face of user requests and include an option to deactivate and delete the chatbot icon. This may not happen because GenAI is the territory to be conquered in the present and future, and Meta is counting on this new feature to obtain targeted information from WhatsApp users, in particular, to understand how they interact with the chatbot, so as to improve specific aspects. The possession of personal data and the type of user requests was, after all, the reason why Meta agreed with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT within WhatsApp; to use the chatbot created by Sam Altman, all you have to do is save the phone number +18002428478 in your phone book to start chatting with ChatGPT.

Although I’m far from understanding the reasons that push a company to make certain choices, it’s still difficult for me to understand why Meta introduced such an important innovation as Meta AI, imposing limits that restrict the users’ wishes. It is unlikely that this will affect the use of the messaging app, as WhatsApp is an essential app for the vast majority of people who use it, and they are very unlikely to give up such a useful tool in their daily lives.

However, it was enough to involve users to ensure a better reception because when there is participation and transparency, any new feature is supported and tolerated.