Meta is introducing a private AI chat feature for its messaging service WhatsApp and the Meta artificial intelligence (AI) app that is designed so the company cannot read the conversations.

An online media outlet, Gigazine, reported on May 14 local time that Meta unveiled a new feature, Incognito Chat with Meta AI, and said conversations are not saved by default and messages disappear.

The core of the feature is that it is not simply a no-history mode. Meta rolled out Incognito Chat as a separate mode to ensure others cannot see such conversations, as more users ask Meta AI about sensitive topics such as health, loans and career paths.

Meta explained that the feature runs based on WhatsApp’s Private Processing technology. Messages are computed in a secure processing environment designed so Meta cannot access it. Conversations are not stored and messages disappear by default.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg (마크 저커버그) called Incognito Chat on Threads the first major AI product in which conversation logs are not stored on servers. He also said AI inference is carried out in a trusted execution environment, and that conversations on the device also disappear when a user ends the session.

Meta also highlighted how it differs from temporary chat functions in existing AI services. It said other services may offer features similar to secret mode or temporary chat, but in some cases operators can view questions and answers. Meta put forward that Incognito Chat goes beyond a mode that does not leave chat history, using a structure that prevents operators from seeing the interaction with AI itself.

Zuckerberg also said that to make broad use of personal superintelligence, sensitive topics must be handled in a way that no one can access. Behind Meta’s push for the feature is a strategy to expand generative AI into everyday advice and personal counseling tools.

Meta also plans to add a Sidechat feature to WhatsApp in the coming months. Sidechat provides private support from Meta AI based on the context of existing chats without interrupting ordinary WhatsApp conversations. This feature is also protected by Private Processing.

The release schedule will be phased. Incognito Chat with Meta AI will be applied sequentially to WhatsApp and the Meta AI app over the coming months. As it expands AI features, Meta is putting privacy-by-design at the forefront while continuing a move to broaden the scope of AI use to sensitive topics.