Meta Introduces ‘Incognito’ AI Chats on WhatsApp Amid Privacy Concerns

Meta Platforms on Wednesday announced the rollout of an incognito mode for users interacting with its AI chatbot on WhatsApp, aiming to address growing concerns over privacy and data security in artificial intelligence conversations.

The company said the new feature will allow users to hold temporary and private conversations with Meta AI in a “secure environment” that even Meta itself cannot access. According to the company, chats conducted in incognito mode will not be saved by default and will disappear once the session ends.

The move comes as generative AI platforms face increasing scrutiny over how user data is collected, stored and used to train large language models. Privacy advocates have raised concerns that users often share highly sensitive information, including personal, financial, medical and workplace details , while interacting with AI chatbots.

Meta’s announcement places it alongside rivals such as Google and OpenAI, which already offer privacy controls for their AI assistants, including options to disable chat history or prevent conversations from being used for AI training.

“We're starting to ask a lot of meaningful questions about our lives with AI systems, and it doesn't always feel like you should have to share the information behind those questions with the companies that run those AI systems,” WhatsApp head Will Cathcart told reporters.

Meta said the incognito mode will also include safeguards against harmful or unsafe interactions . The chatbot will guide users toward helpful information where possible, refuse certain harmful requests and may eventually stop responding altogether in problematic conversations.

Initially, the feature will support text-only interactions . Users will not be able to upload or generate images while using incognito chats. Meta also said users must confirm they are over the age of 13 to access the feature.