WhatsApp is experimenting with displaying status updates in the chat list.

WhatsApp has been discovered to be testing the ability to display Status updates from the Chats list.

Users will be able to rapidly check the statuses of their contacts thanks to the new addition, which is expected to increase the Status feature on the instant messaging service.

WhatsApp has also been found working on a feature that would allow users to create group polls on the desktop. It would allow members of the group to vote for a specific option and view the total number of votes cast.

According to WABetaInfo, the instant messaging service owned by Facebook parent Meta is now testing the ability to show users Status updates immediately from their Chats list or when searching for any of their contacts within the program. According to the source, status updates will surface when the user hits the profile image of their contact. This appears to be similar to how you can now view the Stories shared by the accounts you follow on Meta’s Instagram.

Since February 2017, WhatsApp has had the Status feature in place to provide users with an Instagram Stories-like engaging experience. The feature has been accessible through the app’s dedicated Status tab since its launch.

WhatsApp, on the other hand, appears to be broadening the feature’s reach by allowing users to bring their Status updates to the Chats list, where they can be seen more prominently.

WABetaInfo has given a screenshot of how Status updates will appear when accessed directly from the Chats list. Though the same feature is supposed to be available to users on WhatsApp for Android and iOS releases, it was pulled from a future build of WhatsApp Desktop. It’s also likely to arrive in a beta version of WhatsApp’s mobile clients in the near future.

WhatsApp’s Status function has recently been noticed receiving rapid replies, allowing users to express their feelings about their friends’ Status updates using eight different emojis.

According to WABetaInfo, WhatsApp’s new Desktop beta (version 2.2216.2) has references to allowing users to run group polls, in addition to the ability to read status changes from the Chats list. Members of the group would be able to vote for their preferred alternative and see the overall number of votes cast in a poll. Users, on the other hand, are unlikely to see who voted for which option.

WhatsApp was discovered testing group polls on iOS in March. Last month, it was also shown in some screenshots.

The exact date on which WhatsApp will make its group polls function available to the general public is yet unknown. Given its track record, bringing the feature to people may take some time, and it would be best to test it among beta testers first.

Separately, WABetaInfo says that WhatsApp for Android beta 2.22.10.14 has references to a new footer emphasizing that personal messages on the app are end-to-end encrypted. The similar footnote was noticed at the bottom of the call history section of WhatsApp for Android beta 2.22.8.7 released in March, informing users that calls on the app are end-to-end encrypted.

WhatsApp may bring the footer to promote its end-to-end encryption across other sections on its app in the future. This would help Meta convince users about the security of their messages.