Message Translations on WhatsApp works in individual chats, group conversations, and channel updates.
The feature will support more than 19 languages on iOS at launch
Photo Credit: WhatsApp
WhatsApp on Tuesday announced a new feature called Message Translations, which is aimed at helping users communicate with more people conveniently around the world. As the name suggests, the new feature can break down language barriers by translating messages in conversations in real time. According to WhatsApp, Android users can enable this feature and have it set to translate all messages in a chat thread, as well as future incoming messages.
In a blog post, WhatsApp announced that its new Message Translations feature works in individual chats, group conversations, and channel updates. It is currently rolling out to both Android and iOS devices. On Android, Message Translations feature supports six languages — English, Spanish, Hindi, Portuguese, Russian, and Arabic.
Meanwhile, it will support more than 19 languages on iOS at launch, as per the Meta-owned instant messaging platform.
To translate something on WhatsApp, users can long-press on a message, and they will see a new Translate option. They can then select the language they wish the message to be translated from or to, and also download the language pack for any other translations in the future.
WhatsApp said that Android users can also enable automatic translations for an entire chat thread, so that all of the future incoming messages will be automatically translated, without requiring manual intervention. The company emphasised that Message Translations is designed to protect the privacy of chats and the process happens on-device, where not even WhatsApp can read the contents of the conversations.
Its rollout builds upon several AI-powered additions in WhatsApp in recent months. The messaging platform introduced Writing Help, which leverages Meta AI to provide users with tailored writing suggestions based on the original text. They can draft a basic text, and the AI-powered writing assistant will provide suggestions for improvement, including different tones and styles.
It is similar to Apple Intelligence-powered Writing Tools on iPhone and other Apple devices, and also includes a spell-checker, helping you eliminate spelling and grammatical mistakes in messages.
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