WhatsApp Is Launching Third-Party Chat Integration in Europe

Why It Matters

The move satisfies regulatory pressure and opens WhatsApp to competition, potentially reshaping the European messaging landscape, while also raising user‑privacy and data‑handling considerations for the new third‑party services.

Summary

Meta is preparing to launch third‑party chat integration for WhatsApp across Europe to meet the EU Digital Markets Act, with rollout slated for the coming months. The first interoperable services, BirdyChat and Haiket, will allow users on iOS and Android to exchange messages with other apps while preserving WhatsApp’s end‑to‑end encryption, though the feature will not be available on desktop, web or tablet clients. Users must opt‑in via a new settings notification, and can choose to receive third‑party messages in a separate folder or a combined inbox. Meta emphasizes that third‑party apps must use the same encryption level and that it cannot read encrypted content in transit.