Google Workspace Updates: New community features for Google Chat and an update on Currents

Google

Home
Drive
Calendar
Translate
Mobile
Books
Offers
Wallet
Shopping
Blogger
Finance
Photos
Videos
Even more »
ONLINE_CASINO_WITH_BONUS

Updates

This official feed from the Google Workspace team provides essential information about new features and improvements for Google Workspace customers.

New community features for Google Chat and an update on Currents

Wednesday, April 12, 2023

Note: This blog post outlines upcoming changes to Google Currents for Workspace users. For information on the previous deprecation of Google+ for users with personal Google accounts, please see this post .

What's Changing

Last year, we announced plans to wind down Currents , to focus efforts on community experiences that are better integrated with the rest of Google Workspace. To help our customers manage this transition, we published detailed guidance for Workspace administrators and enabled customers to opt-in for automated migration of Currents data to spaces in Google Chat.

We are nearing the end of this transition. Beginning July 5, 2023, Currents will no longer be available. Workspace administrators can export Currents data using Takeout before August 8, 2023. Beginning August 8th, Currents data will no longer be available for download.

Although we are saying goodbye to Currents, we continue to invest in new features for Google Chat , so teams can connect and collaborate with a shared sense of belonging. Over the last year, we've delivered features designed to support community engagement at scale, and will continue to deliver more. Here is a summary of the features with additional details below:

This month, we’re enabling new ways for organizations to share information across the enterprise with announcements in Google Chat . This gives admin controls to limit permissions for posting in a space, while enabling all members to read and react, helping ensure that important updates stay visible and relevant. Later this year, we plan to simplify membership management by integrating Google Groups with spaces in Chat, enable post-level metrics for announcements, and provide tools for Workspace administrators to manage spaces across their domain.

New announcements feature in Google Chat on mobile device

Announcements in Google Chat

Adding a Google Group during space creation in Google Chat.

Managing space membership with Google Groups

We’ve already rolled out new ways to make conversations more expressive and engaging such as in-line threading to enable rich exploration of a specific topic without overtaking the main conversation and custom emojis to enable fun, personal expression.

In-line threaded conversations

Creating a custom emoji in Google Chat on a mobile device.

Discover and join communities with up to 8,000 members

We’ve also made it easier for individuals to discover and join communities of shared interest . By searching in Gmail , users can explore a directory of available spaces covering topics of personal or professional interest such as gardening, pets, career development, fitness, cultural identity, and more, with the ability to invite others to join via link. Last year, we increased the size of communities supported by spaces in Chat to 8,000 members , and we are working to scale this in a meaningful way later this year.

A directory of spaces in Google Chat for users to join.

As communities grow, it’s essential to provide tools for content moderation and data management . Last year, we introduced space managers , a community lead with abilities to moderate conversation and manage membership , and last year at NEXT, we rolled out data loss prevention (DLP) for Chat. We will continue to enhance community health and data security for Google Chat.

Our partner community is extending the power of Chat through integrations with essential third-party apps such as Jira, GitHub, Asana, PagerDuty , Zendesk and Salesforce . Many organizations have built custom workflow apps using low-code and no-code tools , and we anticipate that this number will continue to grow with the GA releases of the Chat API and AppSheet’s Chat app building capabilities later this year.

For teams to thrive in this rapidly changing era of hybrid work, it’s essential to build authentic personal connections and a strong sense of belonging, no matter when or where individuals work. We will continue to make Google Chat the best option for Workspace customers seeking to build a community and culture for hybrid teams, with much more to come later this year.

Who's impacted

Admins and end users

Why it’s important

The transition from Currents to spaces in Google Chat removes a separate, siloed destination and provides organizations with a modern, enterprise-grade experience that reflects how the world is working today. Google Workspace customers use Google Chat to communicate about projects, share organizational updates, and build community.

Recommended action

Admins:

Review the Change Management Guide .
Use Takeout to explore your organization’s Currents data before August 8, 2023.

End users: Read more about how to get started using spaces in Google Chat .

Availability

Spaces in Google Chat are available to all Google Workspace customers and users with personal Google Accounts.

Resources

Google Admin Help: Transition from Google Currents to Google Chat
Google Admin Help: Export your organization’s Google Currents data
1 Space manager role (Feb 22)
2 Invite others to join via link (Mar 22)
3 Create & manage spaces via API (May 2022)
4 Larger spaces (July 22)
5 Discoverable spaces (Aug 22)
6 In-line threaded conversations (Oct 22)
7 Custom emojis (Oct 22)
8 Data loss prevention (DLP) (Oct 22)
9 Create low-code/no-code Chat apps (Dec 2022)
10 Improved membership management (Jan 23)
11 New capabilities for space managers (Mar 23)
12 Admin installation of Chat apps (Mar 2023)
13 Announcements (Apr 2023)

Google

Filter by product

Accessibility
Accounts
Additional Google services
Admin console
Admin SDK
Alpha
Android
API
App Maker
AppSheet
Assistant
Bet
Beta
BigQuery
Chrome
Cloud Search
Colab
Contacts
Currents
Developer
Directory Sync
DLP
Docs
Drive for desktop
Duet AI
Editors
Education Edition
End-user
G Suite
G Suite for Education
G Suite for Government
Gemini
Gmail
Google Apps Script
Google Calendar
Google Chat
Google Classroom
Google Cloud Directory Sync
Google Docs
Google Drawings
Google Drive
Google Forms
Google Hangouts
Google Keep
Google Maps
Google Meet
Google Meet Hardware
Google Photos
Google Sheets
Google Sites
Google Slides
Google Tasks
Google Vault
Google Vids
Google Voice
Google Workspace
Google Workspace Add-ons
Google Workspace for Education
Google Workspace Marketplace
Google Workspace Migrate
Groups
Identity
iOS
Jamboard
Marketplace
MDM
Microsoft Exchange
Microsoft Outlook
Migration
Mobile
Next 2023
Other
Premier Edition
Rapid
Rapid Release
Rapid Releases
SAML
Scheduled Release
Security and Compliance
SSO
Weekly Recap
What's New
YouTube

Filter by date

2024
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2023
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2022
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2021
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2020
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2019
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2018
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2017
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2016
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2015
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2014
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2013
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2012
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2011
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2010
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2009
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2008
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb
- Jan

2007
- Dec
- Nov
- Oct
- Sep
- Aug
- Jul
- Jun
- May
- Apr
- Mar
- Feb

Subscribe by feed

Subscribe by email

Localized Google Workspace Updates

Español
Français
日本語
Português

Useful Links

Join the official community for Google Workspace administrators

In the Google Cloud Community, connect with Googlers and other Google Workspace admins like yourself. Participate in product discussions, check out the Community Articles, and learn tips and tricks that will make your work and life easier. Be the first to know what's happening with Google Workspace.

Learn about more Google Workspace launches

On the “What’s new in Google Workspace?” Help Center page, learn about new products and features launching in Google Workspace, including smaller changes that haven’t been announced on the Google Workspace Updates blog.

Google
Privacy
Terms

Advertising Programs Business Solutions +Google About Google

Design a Mobile Site

View Site in Mobile | Classic