WhatsApp Update: Major New Feature to Completely Transform Chatting with Loved Ones!

WhatsApp continues to evolve and is potentially stepping into a new phase: that of a multi-platform messaging service. The platform is currently testing a groundbreaking feature: chatting with third-party apps. Here’s everything you need to know about this significant update.

WhatsApp has established itself as a key player in instant messaging and is constantly striving to be more inclusive, interconnected, and streamlined across Android and iOS. Notably, the platform has just introduced its official app for Apple Watch, following its availability on Wear OS watches two years ago.

But this interoperability also extends within the app itself. WhatsApp is gradually rolling out a major new feature in the beta version 2.25.33.8 for Android, as reported by our colleagues at WABetaInfo: chatting with third-party apps. This feature is expected to become more widely available in the coming weeks.

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WhatsApp to Finally Support Chatting with Third-Party Apps

This functionality allows users who desire to directly communicate on WhatsApp with contacts using other apps, simply by enabling it through Settings > Account > Third-Party Chats. The core features are supported: sending messages, photos, videos, voice messages, and documents.

Users can choose between a combined inbox (displaying all WhatsApp conversations and third-party chats in one place) or a separate one. They can also customize notifications, the quality of sent media, and alerts. Some native functionalities are still missing, such as statuses, stickers, or disappearing messages.

This feature provides a glimpse into what future inter-app groups might look like. With these updates, WhatsApp is entering a new era: transforming into a multi-platform messaging service. For now, third-party chats are only available in Europe: they are part of WhatsApp’s efforts to comply with the Digital Markets Act (DMA), the European law that mandates interoperability of services by major platforms.

This feature is entirely optional and aims to provide more freedom, control, and transparency to users, while ensuring the privacy of conversations. Due to different privacy policies across messaging services, a contact blocked on WhatsApp might still be able to message you through a third-party app. However, the only personal information that can be shared is the phone number.

Currently, only the BirdyChat app is compatible. The situation may change as more third-party messengers meet the security and encryption requirements set by WhatsApp.