WhatsApp, one of the world’s most popular messaging apps, connects billions of users worldwide. Meta is preparing to launch a feature that will make it easier for people who speak different languages to communicate with each other. An in-app translation feature is being developed for the Android version of WhatsApp.
According to the news of WABetaInfo site; WhatsApp plans to integrate Google’s Live Translate feature into chats. If this addition is made, users will be able to translate foreign texts without switching between different applications.
Live Translate performs its operations on the device and does not send personal data to Google’s cloud, so the translation feature can work offline once the user downloads the necessary language pack. However, WABetaInfo notes that the tool may initially be limited to certain languages, such as Hindi and English.
Since Live Translate is currently available on select Pixel devices, WhatsApp’s translation feature may not be available on all Android phones. It’s also possible that Google will expand the feature’s availability to more platforms or strike an exclusive deal with Meta. As a result, the feature is still in development and it’s too early to tell its specifics or whether it will ever be released to the public.
Could WhatsApp bring a similar feature to its iPhone app?
With Apple recently launching an API for its Translate app, WhatsApp could easily bring a similar feature to its iOS client, but no reference has yet been seen in the iPhone app, so it remains unclear whether this particular addition is on the company’s roadmap.