Meta has announced Incognito Chat with Meta AI, a new feature designed to enable private AI conversations on WhatsApp and the Meta AI app. Built on Meta's Private Processing technology, the feature is designed to process messages in a secure environment that Meta says even the company itself cannot access.
According to Meta, Incognito Chat creates temporary private AI conversations where chats are not saved and messages disappear by default. The feature is rolling out over the coming months across WhatsApp and the Meta AI app.
Meta Says Incognito Chat Conversations Remain Invisible to Meta
Meta says Incognito Chat is designed for users discussing sensitive topics including personal, financial, health, or work-related information with AI assistants.
When users start an Incognito Chat, messages are processed through Meta's Private Processing system inside what the company describes as a secure environment inaccessible even to Meta itself. The company says:
- Conversations are temporary
- Messages are not saved
- Chats disappear by default
- No one can read the conversation, including Meta
Meta also positioned the feature as an extension of the end-to-end encryption approach it introduced for WhatsApp conversations nearly a decade ago.
Side Chat With Meta AI Also Confirmed
Meta has also confirmed that a feature called Side Chat will arrive in the coming months using the same Private Processing architecture.
According to the company, Side Chat with Meta AI will allow users to privately interact with AI while referencing the context of ongoing conversations without disrupting the main chat thread. Meta says the feature is part of its broader effort to build AI experiences that remain private while operating at large scale across WhatsApp.
Meta Publishes Technical Whitepaper for Private Processing
Alongside the announcement, Meta says it has published a technical whitepaper explaining how Incognito Chat and Private Processing work.
The company says it remains focused on expanding privacy protections for AI conversations as AI assistants become increasingly integrated into messaging platforms and everyday communication workflows. Meta positioning AI conversations as fully private marks a significant shift in how major tech companies are approaching consumer AI trust and data handling. However, because Meta has historically faced intense scrutiny around privacy practices and data usage, the company's "not even us" claim will likely receive close attention from security researchers, regulators, and users once the feature becomes widely available.
