WhatsApp has introduced private Meta AI chats, saying conversations will not be stored in server logs, as experts raise accountability concerns.
WhatsApp has introduced an “incognito” mode for conversations with its Meta AI chatbot, offering exchanges that company leaders say cannot be read by Meta and will not be stored as chat logs on its servers.
The feature is designed for users who want to ask an AI assistant about sensitive subjects without leaving an accessible record. Will Cathcart, the head of WhatsApp, said people want answers on topics such as health, relationships and finances but may feel uneasy sharing personal information with the company.
When the mode is activated, neither the user’s messages nor the chatbot’s responses are monitored, and previous exchanges disappear from the user’s chat, according to the announcement reported by the BBC. Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg described it as the “first major AI product where there is no log of your conversations stored on servers.”
The privacy move also raises a harder question: what happens if an AI response causes harm and no one can retrieve the conversation afterward?
Prof Alan Woodward, a cyber security expert at Surrey University, told the BBC that the new system carries a low risk of weakening WhatsApp’s existing security. But he warned that disappearing conversations could limit accountability if an AI chatbot gives dangerous or misleading advice.
“Personally I think what you ask an AI should remain private as some people ask it very personal matters - but you are placing a great deal of trust in the AI not to lead users astray,” Woodward said.
The concern is especially acute because AI companies have faced lawsuits over alleged harms linked to chatbot interactions. If neither users nor Meta can recover a chat history, it may be difficult to establish what was said before an incident involving harm, death or suicide.
Cathcart said the incognito feature will initially handle text rather than images, and that Meta AI’s guardrails will be cautious about refusing requests that could be interpreted as harmful or illegal. He also said the technology behind the new mode is not the same as WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption for ordinary messages, but called it the equivalent for this purpose.
The launch comes as Meta pushes AI deeper into its apps. Meta AI was added to WhatsApp last year and drew criticism from some users who objected to being unable to turn it off. In May 2025, Zuckerberg said Meta AI had reached one billion users across Meta’s apps, which include WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook and Messenger.
WhatsApp has blocked other AI chatbots from operating through its systems, meaning Meta’s own assistant is the only chatbot available to its billions of users on the platform. The unanswered test for the new private mode is whether Meta can preserve the confidentiality it is promising while still providing enough oversight when something goes wrong.
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