WhatsApp, Google Messenger, Facebook Messenger and Skype all implement the same Signal protocol.
The article's title is misleading, and did not explain how it would work at all.
Like, will the protocol also add logins for different services? I remember having a messenger app a while ago (Trillian), which would merge MSN, ICQ and other chat platforms into a single experience.
I can sorta get how DMs will work. Group chats may be much harder to implement.
Hopefully the opposite is true. There'e end-to-end encryption and if the client isn't written by meta, then meta can't intercept after decryption.
Being able to use meta's chat platform without any of their code being executable on your device is a big improvement. They can't scrape your contacts and data at all.
Yeah, for me my family and close friends have no problem because I explained and told I am not going to use Facebook products.
But when meeting new people, especially groups of people there is a big barrier.