WhatsApp supports over 100 billion messages daily on regular days. During significant events, it records record numbers; for instance, during the 2026 World Cup final, 30 million messages were recorded per second. For those users for whom the app has become part of their daily, social, and professional lives, rumors about its potential disappearance and the emergence of another app raise questions. What is the truth behind these predictions?

Digital transformation and artificial intelligence expert Roland Abi Najm stated in an interview with "An-Nahar" that the news claiming that "WhatsApp" will disappear is mere baseless talk. 

Competing apps... but "WhatsApp" is not stopping

He clarified that the talk about users moving to another app does not mean that "WhatsApp" will stop, saying: "There are currently millions of other apps, such as 'Signal' and 'Telegram', and there are a very large number of apps that the world is already using. However, the existence of these apps does not mean that 'WhatsApp' will stop, and that people will switch from one app to another."

He cited China as an example, saying: "In China, for instance, people do not use 'WhatsApp' to the same extent; they use 'WeChat' because 'WhatsApp' is banned there."

He pointed out that "WhatsApp" belongs to the "Meta" company, which includes "Facebook", "Instagram", and "WhatsApp" in its ecosystem, explaining that the latter "has nearly over 3 billion users. Therefore, it is not logical to come at some point and tell the world: go to another app." 

Abi Najm noted that this idea recurs with digital platforms whenever any issue arises, explaining: "Whenever there is a problem with any platform, discussions begin about people moving to another platform. When 'X' (formerly Twitter) started imposing fees on users, it was said that people would move to another platform. But that did not happen." 

What about "Meta" and monopoly?

In a related context, he pointed out that discussions about the future of the app sometimes intersect with discussions about Meta and government actions against the company and other big tech firms due to monopoly issues. "Meta started with 'Facebook', then acquired 'Instagram', and then 'WhatsApp'. If it were forced at some point to sell these platforms to avoid monopoly, this ecosystem might be affected, but in the end, that does not mean that 'WhatsApp' will stop."

He emphasized that the size of the app's user base makes the talk about its sudden cessation and users moving to other platforms unrealistic, saying: "WhatsApp itself says it has billions of users, so the world will not suddenly move to other platforms."

WhatsApp without numbers
 

Among the things said is that numbers will no longer exist on WhatsApp, and communication will be possible without needing a number. In this regard, Abi Najm clarifies that "the idea of 'WhatsApp', since it started, is based on communicating with someone via their phone number. The app has been working for a while to change this mechanism and is moving towards using usernames."

He adds: "Users will have a name, just like on 'Instagram', 'Facebook', and any other platform. This step aims to provide greater privacy, as "you can talk to someone on 'WhatsApp' without having their phone number and vice versa; it is enough to search for their username."

He noted that this feature has already been rolled out to a significant percentage of users worldwide.