Instagram Threads is expanding its messaging features with the introduction of group chats and the launch of messaging in the European Union. The Meta-owned platform, which now has over 400 million monthly active users, will allow group chats with up to 50 participants starting today.
Threads users aged 18 and above can share text, videos, GIFs, and emojis within group chats, just as they can on the public timeline. Emily Dalton Smith, Threads’ VP of Product Management, explained that these chats, like individual direct messages, are not encrypted. The company positions Threads messaging as a way for people to connect about ongoing conversations, such as sports events or TV shows, rather than as a secure communication service.
“We see messaging as a way for people to connect more deeply with the people they’re already having conversations with — it’s really about going deep with people who share your interests,” Smith said while demonstrating the new feature.
The addition of group chats follows Instagram’s broader focus on Reels and DMs, the features driving the most user engagement. Threads is now making messaging a core part of its app, similar to its competitor X, although X has been shifting toward end-to-end encrypted chat services.
Threads will give users some control over who can start group chats with them. Only people they follow can add them to a chat, making it more restrictive than individual DMs, where messages from non-followed accounts go to a separate Message Requests folder. Other safety features include disabled links and media in message requests, limits on the number of requests sent, and options to block requests from non-followed users. Spam is further filtered to a hidden folder.
Group chat participants can give their chats a name and will soon be able to invite others via a shared link, simplifying connections within specific Communities—Threads’ feature for interest-based groups.
Smith noted that many Threads users follow a different set of people than on Instagram, with over a third of daily users sharing less than half the same connections. This suggests that users are making more “Threads-first” connections on the app.
Messaging in the EU will roll out over the next few days, giving users access to both individual and group chats from launch.
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