WhatsApp has been rolling out updates continuously for quite some time with the aim of enhancing user experience. Now WhatsApp is bringing voice message transcription. This feature was earlier limited to Google Messages on Pixel phones.
As per WABetaInfo, the latest WhatsApp beta version for Android v2.24.15.5 is adding this feature of voice message transcription to the platform. It is expected to be rolled out in several languages.
According to a report by WABetaInfo, WhatsApp's new beta build introduces a feature that provides transcripts for incoming voice messages. When you update to this beta version, you may see a pop-up confirming the availability of these transcripts.
Upon launching the app after updating, you will need to download a language pack or voice message transcription to enable this feature. Currently, it supports five languages: English, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, and Hindi. The audio is analysed on your phone to produce a transcript, with all voice messages remaining encrypted to ensure privacy.
This functionality is similar to how selected Google Pixel phones offer voice message transcriptions for SMS, MMS, or RCS messaging within Google Messages. In that scenario, the audio is quickly analysed, and a text chat box appears beneath the audio waveform, allowing you to get the context of a message even if you can't listen to it at that moment.
One of the advantages of this feature is that you won’t have to suffer through podcast-length voice notes in the future. So now, gone are the days when you would have to listen to half an hour of audio clips just to understand what people were talking about during earning.