I talked with a professor of advertising to make sense of what this means for all of us who use those social media platforms.

WhatsApp says that users will start seeing ads in parts of the app, as owner Meta Platforms moves to cultivate a new revenue stream by tapping the billions of people that use the messaging service.

Meta Platforms is facing stiff competition from Alphabet GOOGL and Amazon AMZN. Meta Platforms, Alphabet and Amazon are expected to absorb roughly 50% of the projected global ad spending by 2028. Alphabet’s focus on leveraging AI to drive growth is a key catalyst.