What you need to know about WhatsApp’s new features

WhatsApp, the popular global messaging platform owned by Meta, has launched new features including a different way to log in and an in-app artificial intelligence assistant.

iPhone users can now use passkeys to log in – meaning they can access the app using Face ID, Touch ID or their iPhone passcode – instead of receiving an SMS to log in.

Whatsapp said on X, formerly Twitter, on April 24 that this feature was “a more secure way to log in.” It also avoids potential challenges in receiving an SMS to log in, with the company adding: “Travelling? no network? no problem.”

The messaging app already rolled out passkeys for Android users in October, as demonstrated by a post shared on Threadsanother social media platform Meta.

People with Google Pixel 8 and 8 Pro phones can now also use Face Unlock, instead of fingerprint or PIN, to unlock and view messages on WhatsApp, as reported by 9to5Google.

Another change also recently arrived in the messaging app. On April 18, Meta expanded a new AI assistant on your social platforms – Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp.

Users can use the assistant, called Meta Llama 3, in feeds, chats and search within apps to obtain information and generate images “without having to leave the app they are using,” the company said.

Meta AI in English is now available in more than a dozen countries outside the US – Australia, Canada, Ghana, Jamaica, Malawi, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, Singapore, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.