WhatsApp Hits 3 Billion Monthly Users, Becomes Meta’s Top AI Channel
May 1, 2025 – WhatsApp has officially crossed a major milestone with more than 3 billion monthly active users, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced during the company’s Q1 earnings call. This positions WhatsApp alongside Facebook as one of the few apps globally to reach that scale.
Acquired by Facebook in 2014 for $19 billion, WhatsApp remains free to use and does not display ads. It hit the 2 billion user mark in 2020, and has since become an essential part of Meta’s AI strategy and business infrastructure.
According to Meta CFO Susan Li, WhatsApp is currently the top platform for Meta AI engagement, with most users interacting with AI features in private, one-on-one chats. She said Meta continues to enhance its AI offerings on WhatsApp and across its other services.
Meta AI Expansion and U.S. Strategy
Zuckerberg emphasized that while WhatsApp dominates global messaging markets, especially outside the U.S., American users still favor built-in phone messaging apps. To overcome this, Meta recently launched a standalone Meta AI app, aimed specifically at gaining traction in the U.S. personal AI space.
“We’re in a different position in the U.S. compared to the rest of the world,” Zuckerberg explained. “The Meta AI app will be crucial for leadership in this space, while we continue improving AI across all our apps.”
WhatsApp Business and AI Chatbots
WhatsApp’s Business platform is a growing revenue stream for Meta, contributing significantly to the $510 million earned from its family of apps in Q1. Meta is currently testing AI tools for businesses, including a new dashboard and agent interface that allows companies to train Meta’s AI on their brand-specific data from sources like websites, Instagram, and Facebook.
These businesses may soon be able to activate AI-powered chatbots within their WhatsApp conversations to handle customer inquiries more efficiently.
With over 3 billion users and a clear pivot toward AI integration, WhatsApp is becoming not only Meta’s messaging powerhouse but also a central gateway to its expanding ecosystem of AI-driven tools.
