Major WhatsApp update brings personalised AI tool to app

Artificial intelligence image editing lets users add tattoos or different haircuts to their pictures

WhatsApp is integrating features from Meta AI like image editing (iStock/ Getty Images)

A major new WhatsApp update will see several highly-anticipated AI features soon roll out to its billions of users.

The update forms part of WhatsApp’s integration of Meta AI, which aims to offer artificial intelligence capabilities that are similar to OpenAI’s ChatGPT within Meta’s suite of apps.

One of the biggest changes to the messaging app will be the introduction of personalised image generation, which uses generative AI to create or modify pictures from simple text prompts.

“If you’ve ever wondered what you might look like as a superhero, or wanted to try out different hair or outfits, you can now imagine yourself doing just about anything,” a blog post introducing the new AI features on WhatsApp stated.

“Simply type ‘Imagine me’ in chats with Meta AI to get started. After a quick set up, you’ll be able to add a prompt like ‘Imagine me in a retro ping and green ski outfit’ and Meta AI will generate an image of you in that personalised scene.”

WhatsApp’s new AI tools allows users to create images by typing ‘imagine me’ in chats (WhatsApp)

The latest update is currently only available for English-speaking beta users in the US, though WhatsApp plans to roll it out to more languages and countries “soon”. The Independent has reached out to Meta for more information.

Some artificial intelligence features are already available within newer versions of WhatsApp following previous integrations of Meta AI, including the ability to chat with an AI bot.

A broader update to Meta’s AI tool saw it expand the current capabilities of the assistant, making it available in seven additional languages across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp.

The AI will be powered by Meta’s new Llama 405B, which comes with improved reasoning capabilities that make it more useful for topics like mathematics and coding.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the new Llama AI model will be open source in order to make it “good for the world”, bucking the industry trend set by OpenAI.

“I believe that open source is necessary for a positive AI future. AI has more potential than any other modern technology to increase human productivity, creativity, and quality of life – and to accelerate economic growth while unlocking progress in medical and scientific research,” the tech boss wrote in a blog post explaining the decision.

“Open source will ensure that more people around the world have access to the benefits and opportunities of AI, that power isn’t concentrated in the hands of a small number of companies, and that the technology can be deployed more evenly and safely across society.”