A WhatsApp icon Months ago, some WhatsApp users noticed a change to their app.
“Why am I being forced into using Meta AI?”, Redditor u/bles101 asked at the time. “I didn’t ask for it, I don’t want it and now I can’t disable it.”
This app user seems to have been an early – if unwilling – adopter of Meta AI (Meta is the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp), which WhatsApp says has been integrated into the app in 22 countries.
“Meta AI can help you with answers, ideas and inspiration,” their site reads. It also promises imaginative images, search engine-like information retrieval, photo editing features, a chat function and even help with drafting your text.
And now, Meta AI’s chatbot is being rolled out in the UK. It appears as a dedicated widget on the app, leading some app users to ask: “Why is there no way to deactivate it?”.
Why is there no way to deactivate it? Why do I have to send WhatsApp search queries to Meta AI and its partners?
— Gari (@garigonz) March 21, 2025
People seem a little unenthused
“How can I disable the Meta AI feature and remove the Meta AI Button from the home screen, it’s annoying,” an X user wrote underneath WhatsApp’s announcement.
Some were a little more forceful. “Why are you forcing this? Why not add an option to disable? Why the fuck would I EVER want this shit in my messaging app?,” another X commenter opined.
“Delete, delete, delete,” he urged.
delete delete delete
— Charlie (@charlietaylorco) March 25, 2025
why are you forcing this? why not add an option to disable?
why the fuck would I EVER want this shit in my messaging app?
Still, others were more excited at the roll-out of the feature, which allows users to do things like generate images, check their team’s score, forward a text message to see whether the information in it is accurate, and collect recipes.
“Finally, thank you,” one reply reads.
Can you really not switch it off?
Meta doesn’t seem to have offered a one-click option to get rid of the widget yet, no.
HuffPost UK has asked Meta for comment on this.
You can, however, complete an objection form in their app settings to ask Meta to stop using things like your Facebook posts to train AI.
Type /reset-ai into a chat to delete Meta AI’s memory of that conversation.
You’re also able to type /download-all-ai-info to get your full AI conversation history too.
And if you enter /reset-all-ais, it’ll clear your Messenger, WhatsApp, or Instagram AI chat history.
