Google Chat gets video messages and other new capabilities

Google has announced new Workspace updates for its messaging platform Google Chat, which is primarily available to all users through Gmail. These features, including video messaging capabilities, are intended to improve communication between users, save time and make them more effective. The company is also building on the voicemail feature it introduced to Google Chat earlier this year by going one step further with additional capabilities.

Video messages

In a workspace bloggingGoogle highlighted the introduction of video messaging capability in Google Chat and revealed some real-world examples of it. It can be used by customer support or sales team members to share video updates about new features or account changes, the company says. It is also said to be useful for sharing company-wide updates or a proxy for a live meeting missed by members.

Like any other chat message, this feature can be used in direct messages (DMs), group DMs, and rooms, and can be interacted with by quoting, replying, or commenting. Messages sent or received are saved in the Media section of the Shared tab.

However, the video messaging feature has certain limitations, the most notable of which is its availability. According to Google, video messages in Google Chat are not available on ChromeOS, Linux, and Firefox. While users can receive them on all platforms, they can only be sent over the Internet. This feature is currently not available on mobile.

Transcriptions of voice messages

In a next blog afterGoogle also announced the rollout of transcription capabilities for voice messages on Google Chat. Following the launch, users will now see automatic transcriptions of voice messages in Chat on web and mobile. It can be viewed by tapping on the new one View transcript option that appears below the voice message. Alternatively, users can also choose to hide transcripts.

Google says that transcripts of voice messages will be treated as readable text for screen readers. It will adhere to the device’s language settings.