Meta (META.O) has launched its first AI-driven ad targeting program for businesses on WhatsApp, aiming to generate revenue from the popular chat service. Announced on Thursday at a conference in Brazil, CEO Mark Zuckerberg introduced the new tools in a video presentation.This marks a significant shift for WhatsApp, known for its strong privacy credentials. Unlike Facebook and Instagram, which rely heavily on targeted advertising, WhatsApp has avoided such tools. However, Meta has been introducing commerce and payment features on WhatsApp for several years, including business messaging tools for customer service and marketing.
Previously, these tools sent messages to all users who opted in. The new AI tools will use behavior on Facebook and Instagram to target messages to customers most likely to be receptive, provided they use the same phone number across accounts. WhatsApp’s head of strategic markets, Guilherme Horn, stated that these AI tools will help businesses optimize ad delivery to engaged users, making ad spending more efficient. Meta has been intensifying efforts to monetize WhatsApp, which, despite its popularity and the $22 billion acquisition price in 2014, has contributed little to Meta’s total revenue. At the conference, Meta also introduced an AI chatbot to handle business inquiries and announced the integration of Brazil’s digital payment method PIX into WhatsApp’s payment tool.