WhatsApp’s upcoming instant camera feature has a new name. The Instagram-style tool, which lets you send photos and videos that disappear after being viewed once, will now be called Zaps.
The change was spotted by WABetaInfo in the WhatsApp beta for Android version 2.26.46.2, available through the Google Play Store. The feature was previously spotted as Instants in beta version 2.26.45.13.
Now, any photo or video you capture using the new camera will be called a Zap. The name fits the feature well.
You open the camera by tapping a lightning bolt icon at the top of the Chats tab, and a "zap" suggests something quick and spontaneous, which is exactly how WhatsApp wants these to feel.
Not to mention that it will also create a better distinction between WhatsApp and Instagram, since the latter's version of the feature is also called Instants.
Send WhatsApp Zaps to Groups and Unknown Contacts
The bigger change is who you can send Zaps to. When the feature first surfaced as Instants, it was limited to mutual contacts.
With Zaps, WhatsApp is opening it up to any contact, groups and even unknown numbers. WhatsApp may also eventually let you send Zaps to Channels, though it’s not clear whether that will be available at launch.
Like before, Zaps disappear after the recipient views them once and are end-to-end encrypted, so only you and the recipient can see them.
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How WhatsApp Zaps Will Work in Chats
Zaps won’t sit in a separate section of the app. Instead, they’ll appear directly in the chat alongside your regular messages.
If someone sends you more than one Zap in a row, WhatsApp will group them into a single bubble showing the total count, such as "2 Zaps", so your chat doesn’t get cluttered.
When you open a Zap, it shows up in a dedicated full-screen view with the sender’s name at the bottom. From there, you can react with any emoji or type a reply using the reply bar.
Once viewed, the Zap disappears for the recipient. The sender, however, can still see what they sent in the chat. Zaps also won’t show up in the media section of the chat info screen.
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When Will WhatsApp Zaps Roll Out?
Zaps are still in development on Android and aren’t available to beta testers yet. WhatsApp hasn’t said when the feature will roll out to everyone.
However, considering that it is under development, the feature should roll out to beta testers soon, followed by a wider rollout sometime in early 2027. That's our guess though.
WhatsApp head Kunal Shah recently laid out WhatsApp’s roadmap, naming richer, more expressive conversations as one of the app’s top priorities. Well, a quick, playful camera tool like Zaps seems like a natural step in that direction.
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