Earlier quoted context omitted.
WhatsApp's encryption scheme was designed by Open Whisper Systems, which is now Signal, and even uses the Signal protocol library: http://www.cdn.whatsapp.net/security/WhatsApp-Security-White... Of course you got all the metadata going to FB, but it's still a good messenger feature-wise for now, so I'll keep it as a backup in case my favorite privacy-conscious messenger is down again for 10 hours.
What good is e2e encryption that is essentially becomes mere in transit encryption, since WhatsApp will filter your messages BEFORE they are sent to see if it needs to take any action? (Which action is of course phoning home, outside the precious Signal Protocol)
There is no evidence that messages ever leak outside of WhatsApp via means other than potential unencrypted backups that you may or may not be using at a cloud provider not connected to Facebook or your IME.
If you're targeted by NSO or whatever nation state that would be interested enough in you to compromise you, you got other things to worry about.