How the idea of a metaverse and avatars are chosen from other messaging apps, Whatsapp also seems to be interested in the same too. According to a recent publish (opens in new tab) by WABetaInfo, WhatsApp will integrate avatars into the messaging app. The blog post shows that the feature in development would work during video calls.
As seen in the screenshot, the UI for video calls has been tweaked to include a new button below the video. At this point, the report states that the feature is not enabled and is in the early stages of development. It was mentioned that the app gets an additional section called “Avatar Editor”, which will allow you to use avatars as stickers in chats. Instagram recently added this feature also.
We could speculate that the feature might work similarly to Apple’s Animoji. As all major devices starting from the iPhone X come with dedicated Face ID hardware, WhatsApp can also leverage it to create the avatars on its own platform. For Android devices, the messaging app would have to rely entirely on front-facing cameras.
iOS users can create their own Memoji sets by setting up their avatars on iPhones. They are also available on WhatsApp through the stickers section. However, none of them can be used in the web interface or desktop version of the application.
manage avatars
Meta is fully committed to the idea that the metaverse is the future of online social communities. So it’s not surprising that the avatar feature launched first on Facebook Messenger, followed by Instagram. When the feature also comes to WhatsApp, it would complete the changes to the Meta app ecosystem.
There are no details on how avatars are managed on WhatsApp via the Avatar editor. However, we expect Meta plans to make it easier for users to manage all of their avatars in a single app or setting preferably on Facebook. Users can choose to create multiple avatars for different apps and set a default as well. The experience would also be complete when the feature made its way to the desktop app.
While there is a lot of enthusiasm for Windows and android users, iOS users can keep Memojis. Reports suggest that WhatsApp is developing a iPad as well as a macOS version of the application. Users may not go to the trouble of creating a new set of avatars again just for WhatsApp. That’s why Meta needs to sync the feature across all its platforms.