WhatsApp on Tuesday announced several new features to make coordination easier for larger group chats. Among the new additions is enhanced polls, allowing users to toggle vote deadlines and send anonymous responses. They will also be able to alert everyone in a group chat about time-sensitive messages at once using a new tagging feature. Meanwhile, new group chats on WhatsApp can now be created quickly with people from an existing one.
New WhatsApp Features for Group Chats
In a blog post, WhatsApp said that its polling feature has been upgraded to simplify decision-making in group chats. Users can set an end time for polls, after which voting will automatically close. The instant messaging platform has also introduced an option to hide voter names. This will allow participants to share their preferences more privately.
Further, poll creators can edit questions within 15 minutes of posting to fix typos or clarify options, eliminating the need to delete them and create a new poll.
The Meta-owned platform is also rolling out @all mentions. As the name suggests, this feature allows users to notify every member of a group with a single tag instead of mentioning participants individually. According to WhatsApp, the feature is intended for time-sensitive updates such as office or school closures, event reminders, or last-minute schedule changes.
In groups with more than 32 members, however, only administrators will be able to use the @all mention. Such mentions can still alert users even if the group chat is muted. However, recipients can choose to mute @all notifications through the app’s notification settings.
The third new addition is the ability to create a new group chat directly from an existing one without manually adding participants again. As per the company, it is useful for starting side conversations, organising event logistics, planning surprise parties, or discussing specific topics separately without cluttering the original group.
The new group chat features on WhatsApp are rolling out gradually and will be available over the coming weeks.
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