How can new AI features for Meta's WhatsApp Business help users?

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced new AI-powered features for WhatsApp Business apps at the global Conversations event in Sao Paulo this week.

According to TechCrunch, these new AI features are aimed at improving customer engagement and interactions for businesses.

The 40-year-old tech billionaire said: "Now, our vision is not just to build a single AI assistant, but also to enable lots of different AIs that can serve different purposes, including for businesses.

"Any business should be able to quickly stand up an agent that can talk to your customers, provide support, and facilitate commerce."

The new AI features will allow users to use AI to create Facebook and Instagram ads that can initiate a WhatsApp chat with a business.

The company said it is testing an AI-driven customer support, designed to automatically address customer queries about catalogue or frequently asked questions.

Currently, the social media company is testing this with select merchants in India and Singapore, with expansion to Brazil coming soon.

Furthermore, Meta emphasised that AI-generated messages will be clearly denoted to ensure customers are aware they are not conversing with a human representative of a company.

Additionally, WhatsApp also aims to leverage AI for targeted messaging, enabling businesses to reach specific subsets of customers rather than broadcasting messages to all subscribers.

The company said that its Ads Manager will now provide recommendations for suitable audience segments receptive to receiving tailored messages beyond updates for their orders.

Meta is offering their tools for free to benefit merchants who prefer to avoid additional expenses associated with purchasing similar tools.