No more numbers? Anthony Joshua fronts WhatsApp's username rollout

Messaging app WhatsApp is introducing usernames, allowing users to connect with others without having to share their phone numbers, in its latest move to strengthen privacy on the messaging platform.

Starting this week, users can reserve a username ahead of the feature's official rollout later this year. According to WhatsApp, the early reservation period is designed to give its more than three billion users the opportunity to secure their preferred username before the feature becomes widely available.

Once usernames launch, users who choose to enable the feature will be able to initiate conversations using their username instead of revealing their phone number when messaging someone or a business for the first time.

The update also extends to group conversations, offering users an alternative way to participate in chats without immediately exposing their personal contact details to people they may not know.

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As part of the feature rollout, WhatsApp also released a 90-second film featuring British professional boxer Anthony Joshua sitting in a barbershop chair, deciding what his WhatsApp username should be. The film introduces the feature with a simple message: "You don't need to give out your number now if you don't want to."

Joshua then goes about his daily routine, asking people around him what his username should be. Champthony? TheRealAnthonyJoshua? TheLandlord?

The film ends with the tagline, "Same number. New name. More privacy. What's your WhatsApp?", pointing to a future where people ask for each other's WhatsApp usernames, rather than phone numbers, to connect.

To help users select a unique identity, WhatsApp is introducing a username generator that can suggest available options. Meanwhile, creators, businesses and organisations will have the option to claim the same username they already use on Instagram or Facebook, helping them maintain a consistent presence across Meta's platforms.

The feature has also been designed with privacy at its core. Unlike traditional social media platforms, WhatsApp said there will be no searchable username directory or discovery page. Instead, users will need to know another person's exact username before they can start a conversation.

To provide an additional layer of protection, WhatsApp is also introducing an optional username key. When enabled, others will need both the username and the associated key before they can send a message.

Users can reserve their username through the latest version of WhatsApp by navigating to Settings > Account > Username.

The company said usernames will be rolled out gradually over the coming months, with users receiving an in-app notification once the feature becomes available in their respective countries.

The move marks WhatsApp's latest effort to give users greater control over how they communicate, while reducing the need to share personal phone numbers when connecting with new people, communities or businesses.

Lately, WhatsApp has been driving home its privacy commitments through new features and various campaigns. In May last year, the app launched its largest global campaign to date titled “Not even WhatsApp". The campaign spotlights the platform’s end-to-end encryption by reminding users that no one, not even WhatsApp, can access their personal messages.

It rolled out with a TV spot directed by Australian filmmaker Mark Molloy and produced by Smuggler. Shot across locations in Mexico City and Sydney, the 60-second ad flips the camera to WhatsApp’s perspective, on the other side of the screen, where viewers can see the people communicating, but not the content of their messages.

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