WhatsApp event invites now reach friends who don’t use WhatsApp
Planning a party on WhatsApp no longer means leaving out the friend who refuses to install it. Meta is updating Events so an invitation can go out as a link, and anyone who opens it can read the details and RSVP without a WhatsApp account or the app.
Privacy got some thought. Guests you don’t know won’t see your phone number, and people replying from outside WhatsApp only get the event’s address once they’ve said yes, Meta says. Invites can carry a cover photo and travel by text or email, and 9to5Mac notes there’s a QR code option as well.
Organizers also get a new Events Home under Settings. It lists past and upcoming events you’ve created or been invited to and handles RSVPs, custom reminders and an optional plus-one for guests. Events themselves aren’t new, since they already lived inside group and one-on-one chats, so the update mostly turns a chat feature into a proper planner.
The new Events is rolling out to everyone over the next few weeks, timed for holiday get-togethers, and personal messages and calls remain end-to-end encrypted.
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