WhatsApp is quietly preparing one of its most visible interface changes in years, shifting the GIF search engine that powers countless reaction clips in chats. Instead of relying on Tenor, the messaging giant is moving to Klipy as its main partner for finding and sharing animated images. The change is tied to Tenor’s planned shutdown and signals how central GIF infrastructure has become to everyday messaging.
For users, the switch will reshape what appears when they tap the GIF button, which memes surface first, and how reliably those animations load. For developers and rival platforms, it is another sign that the end of Tenor is forcing a rapid realignment around new providers, with Klipy positioning itself as a ready-made replacement.
Why WhatsApp is moving away from Tenor
The core driver behind WhatsApp’s decision is simple: Tenor is winding down. Reporting on the change notes that Tenor has already stopped accepting new API registrations and that the service is scheduled to be “ended in mid-2026,” a timeline that leaves major clients scrambling to secure continuity for GIF search before the cutoff. In that context, WhatsApp’s plan to replace Tenor with Klipy is less a cosmetic tweak and more a necessary response to the looming disappearance of a key piece of messaging infrastructure, as highlighted in coverage that attributes the shift to Tenor’s shutdown and credits the update News Digital.
Tenor’s retreat is not just a WhatsApp problem. Developers discussing the change describe how Tenor has already shut down new API registrations and is steering partners toward alternatives, with one community thread explicitly framed around “Tenor is shutting down” and presenting Klipy as the “replacement GIF API.” In that thread, the maintainers spell out concrete Steps for migration, underscoring that this is a structural shift in the GIF ecosystem rather than a one-off product experiment.
How Klipy fits into WhatsApp’s GIF and sticker experience
WhatsApp is not just swapping one search box for another, it is retooling how users discover both GIFs and stickers. Reporting on the latest feature work explains that WhatsApp will “Replace Tenor” with “Klipy for” GIFs and “Stickers,” indicating that Klipy’s catalog will feed multiple expressive formats inside the app rather than only classic looping clips. That same coverage notes that the shift to Klipy was spotted in a recent beta build and explicitly frames the change as a move to “Replace Tenor” with “Klipy,” confirming that the new provider is being wired directly into WhatsApp’s core media picker for both GIFs and sticker-style content, as seen in analysis of how WhatsApp plans to use Klipy.
Separate reporting on WhatsApp’s feature roadmap reinforces that the company is “developing Klipy integration” as part of a broader set of “Weekly” “Beta Updates” that also include “New Features and” interface tweaks like cover photos and privacy controls. In that context, Klipy is not an isolated plug-in but one element of a larger refresh of the media experience, with the new “Klipy GIF” provider being wired into the same panel where users already browse emojis, stickers, and other visual reactions, as detailed in coverage of the Klipy GIF rollout.
What changes for users: search results, providers, and timelines
For everyday users, the most immediate difference will be what appears when they tap the GIF icon in a chat. Today, WhatsApp lets people search animated images through “GIPHY” and “Tenor,” effectively blending two large catalogs into a single interface. Reporting on the upcoming transition explains that “Klipy to replace Tenor for” WhatsApp users, which means that once Tenor is fully removed, the app will rely on “Klipy” alongside “GIPHY” for its GIF results. That same coverage notes that “However” the change is expected to be largely seamless from a user perspective, with the main impact showing up in the mix of memes and reaction clips that surface in search, as detailed in analysis of how WhatsApp is preparing Klipy “Tenor for” “GIF” search.
The timing of the switch is already visible in WhatsApp’s test builds. On iOS, the company has pushed a beta labeled “26.2.10.70” through the TestFlight beta “Program,” and analysis of that release notes that WhatsApp is now focusing on the transition away from Tenor, including a plan to fully remove “Tenor on July 1, 2026.” The same reporting highlights that the iOS beta version is identified as “26.2” with build “10.70,” underscoring that this is not a distant concept but a concrete feature in active testing, as seen in the detailed breakdown of the 26.2 “10.70” beta “Program.”
Klipy’s rise as Tenor’s successor across the web
WhatsApp’s move fits into a broader pattern in which Klipy is emerging as a default successor to Tenor across multiple platforms. One report on the messaging shift notes that Tenor has already shut down new API registrations and that developers who once relied on Tenor’s “API” for GIFs and memes are now being pointed toward Klipy through an official partner channel. That same coverage, attributed “By The News Digital,” frames the WhatsApp change as part of a larger migration in which apps that previously integrated Tenor’s “API” are now expected to plug into Klipy instead, a trend that is particularly visible in the way Tenor is being phased out.
Developer communities are already treating Klipy as the practical replacement. In one widely shared thread, app builders are told to “Swap the” host in their codebase to “https://api.klipy.com/” and to “Generate” a free key in a dedicated “Partner Panel,” a set of instructions that positions Klipy as a drop-in successor for Tenor’s infrastructure. That same discussion, framed around the “API” migration, makes clear that the goal is to help apps “Ship” without disruption once Tenor goes offline, as laid out in the detailed Partner Panel guidance.
What this means for other platforms and the future of GIFs
WhatsApp is not alone in rethinking its GIF stack. In the gaming and chat world, users have spotted that “Discord” appears to be adding support to search “Klipy and Giphy” GIFs after the news of “Tenor” going away, a sign that even long standing platforms are preparing for a post Tenor landscape. That community observation, shared in a discussion about how “Discord” is adapting its GIF search, suggests that Klipy is quickly becoming a standard option alongside Giphy for any service that previously leaned on Tenor, as reflected in the thread about Klipy and Giphy replacing “Tenor.”
From my perspective, the convergence around Klipy across WhatsApp, developer communities, and platforms like “Discord” suggests that the GIF ecosystem is consolidating around a smaller set of providers with deeper integrations. Another report on WhatsApp’s plans to “Replace Tenor” with “Klipy for” GIFs and “Stickers” underscores that this is not a marginal feature but a core part of how people communicate in chat apps, and that Klipy’s role will extend beyond simple search into richer sticker style content, as seen in the coverage of WhatsApp’s decision to Replace Tenor with “Klipy for” “Stickers.” As Tenor’s shutdown approaches, the way these integrations are handled will shape not just which memes trend in chats, but how resilient and flexible the underlying media infrastructure is for years to come.
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