WhatsApp CEO, Co-Founder Jan Koum Says He's Leaving Facebook
- Mobile messaging tool has grown to 1.5 billion users worldwide
- Social network bought Koum’s app for $22 billion in 2014
WhatsApp founder and Chief Executive Officer Jan Koum is leaving Facebook Inc., just a few years after his messaging app was acquired by the social-media giant for $22 billion.
With Koum’s departure, Facebook loses one of its staunchest internal advocates for user privacy, amid a broader crisis of trust over Facebook’s treatment of personal data. Koum posted his plan to depart on his Facebook page, saying the decision was emotional. His mobile-messaging tool, which has been kept separate from Facebook’s main social network, its Messenger app and other businesses, is known for offering end-to-end encryption, meaning only the sender and recipient can see the content of messages. The app has about 1.5 billion users worldwide. The news received a quick response from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.