What do these new official icons say about the future of WhatsApp?

WhatsApp Is an extremely popular app that has been around for a long time and during all that time the WhatsApp icon hasn’t really changed much. It is a bit like an old friend, always there and always recognizable. New images have leaked, however, showing official renderings of altered WhatsApp icons so we are going to look into it a bit further now and explain what is going on and what it could mean for the future of the app.

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The screenshot below, which we can share thanks to the team at WABetaInfo, includes a set of themed icons on show in Android 13, which is the latest version of Google’s open-source mobile operating system, due to receive a general release soon. As the screenshot shows, WhatsApp has officially added a monochromatic icon that is already available to all beta users on Android 13.

This move seems to indicate that WhatsApp is moving in a more open way towards offering support to Android 13’s API. This is because the new icon fits with new theming options coming to Android 13, with the icon changing depending on the themed settings of the Android 13 device. Obviously, this move doesn’t have any direct bearing on iOS WhatsApp users, but it does indicate an interesting shift in perspective at WhatsApp HQ. Does this mean that further Android integration could be just around the corner? Could we be about to see WhatsApp chat bubbles finally coming to Android devices? We will have to wait and see.

The new icon is still only available to WhatsApp beta users and Android 13 is currently only available to certain Pixel 6 owners. This means most users will have to wait before they can access the new icon. It does certainly seem, however, that this is on the way and will be available for everyone to try soon.

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Image via: WABetaInfo