Meta, the company that owns WhatsApp, announced the introduction of in-app ads through the “Updates” Tab, which displays statuses and channels. Ads will appear to users in the “Status” section, alongside statuses posted by friends or family members.

Meta said in a statement that the new ads will be displayed based on users’ interests, using limited information such as city, country, language, the channels they follow, and how they interact with ads. Users can adjust their ad preferences from the Meta Accounts Center.

“We’ve been talking for years about how to build a business on WhatsApp in a way that doesn’t interrupt personal chats, and we believe the Updates tab is the right place to introduce that,” the statement said.

“We will never sell or share your phone number to advertisers. Your personal messages, calls and groups you are in will not be used to determine the ads you may see,” the statement added.

The updates include displaying promoted channels to users when they click the “Explore” button, to help them find new channels. Users will also soon have the option to subscribe to some channels to receive exclusive updates.

The “Status” feature allows WhatsApp users to post texts, images, audio clips, and short video clips that disappear after 24 hours.