WhatsApp Is Getting AI: This Is How "Images for You" Will Work
AI in WhatsApp isn't new, however Meta is now testing a feature that will generate images from user photographs.
WABetaInfo has published an image showing a new section coming to the app titled "Images for You generated by AI," showcasing some of the capabilities of this feature.
WhatsApp currently utilizes AI for various features such as automated message replies, personalized sticker suggestions, content moderation, smart notifications, image categorization, voice-to-text transcription, group chat management, and language translation. Now a new feature will be added to this list.
The screenshot reveals interesting details. For example, it indicates that this tool will allow users to take a photograph that Meta AI can use as a reference to generate additional images. Furthermore, the description mentions that the feature will also be available in other chats outside of Meta AI. Users will be able to invoke it by typing @MetaAI followed by "imagine me".
However, this feature will not create multimedia content from scratch; rather, it will use photographs as a starting point to generate new content.
Since April 2024, Meta, the company behind WhatsApp, introduced Meta AI, an artificial intelligence based on its Llama 3 model. This AI functions as a chatbot, integrating Bing's search engine and the ability to generate images, similar to tools like Copilot, Dall-E, Midjourney, or Stable Diffusion. There are some differences, as the commands for generating images previously used "imagine/[image request]", compared to the more organic "imagine me".
However, there is a notable limitation with Meta AI: it is currently only available in certain regions. As of July 1, 2024, the AI can only be used in English and in select countries including Australia, Canada, Ghana, Jamaica, Malawi, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, Singapore, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
It's worth noting that this isn't the first time AI has been used within the WhatsApp app. Since 2023, the company has been testing AI integration to create personalized stickers. However, this feature is not available to all users, as most are only able to create new stickers using files from their image galleries.