Soon, WhatsApp will offer AI-powered summaries of unread messages: Details

WhatsApp is testing an AI-powered message summaries feature through Meta's Private Processing, offering summaries of unread group and personal messages

WhatsApp is testing a new AI-driven feature that enables users to privately generate summaries of unread messages in both personal and group chats. As per WABetaInfo, the feature is backed by Meta AI but operates within a system called Private Processing, which is designed to safeguard user privacy.

 

Earlier this year, Meta announced its plans to introduce cloud-based AI features on WhatsApp, including tools to summarise unread chats and provide writing suggestions. These capabilities now appear to be entering the beta testing stage.

 

According to WABetaInfo, the message summary function is currently available to a limited group of Android beta testers, with a wider rollout anticipated in the coming weeks. 

AI summary for WhatsApp Unread Messages: How it works

The report explains that once Private Processing is enabled in the app’s settings, users will see a special button when they have multiple unread messages. Tapping this button sends a secure, private request to the Private Processing system, which then generates a summary of the unread content. The report highlights that this process remains fully private, with no user data being stored.

 

Private Processing ensures that all data is handled locally on the user’s device, without access by WhatsApp, Meta, or any third-party entity. User interactions remain anonymous and unlinkable to personal identity, thanks to encrypted connections and secure routing.

 

This functionality can be particularly useful for quickly catching up on long threads in active group chats, offering a brief overview without needing to scroll through every message—while keeping user privacy intact.

 

The AI message summary is entirely optional. Users who prefer not to use it can simply ignore the unread messages button or disable the feature via Private Processing settings. Additionally, users with Advanced Chat Privacy enabled will not have access to this summary function. 

What is Private Processing?

Meta previously introduced Private Processing as a way to protect user data while handling AI requests in the cloud. The system, described as a confidential computing framework, mirrors Apple’s Private Cloud Compute (PCC), which was introduced last year to support Apple Intelligence while preserving privacy.

 

According to Meta, Private Processing enables secure handling of AI-based tasks like message summarisation and writing suggestions, without granting access to personal data. It creates a protected virtual cloud environment where tasks are performed without Meta—or anyone else—seeing the actual message content.