Google Upgrades Hangouts; Splits it Into Meet, Chat to Compete With Slack

Google, even after being one of the biggest tech giants in the world is surprisingly not much known for its chat platforms till date.

Google tried to up its chat game by introducing two apps ‘Allo’ and ‘Duo’ earlier. On Thursday, Google announced in a conference that it is bringing some major updates for its long-time chat platform ‘Hangouts’.

These updates will turn Hangouts into a tool for businesses and enterprises. Google plans to split Hangouts into two different apps, namely, ‘Meet’ and ‘Chat’.

While Meet will be focussed upon video calling, Chat will be a completely chat based platform, something like Slack or Flock.Also read: Xiaomi Unveils Smart Shoes With Intel Technology Inside

Google aims at bringing fast and frictionless video calling experience to the enterprises through Meet. As per the company, users can invite up to 30 participants at one time. The app is integrated with Google Calendars and other applications of G-suite as well. This will make it easier for the working class to keep track of their meetings.

Hangouts Chat, on the other hand, aims to bring a virtual chat room to enable instant messaging and file exchange between team members. This comes as a direct competition to the messaging service ‘Slack’ which is the used in most of the offices currently.

Hangouts Chat will also be integrated with the G-suite applications, making it easier for people to exchange data stored on the Google Drive. Also, Chats will be integrated with third-party services like Xero, Asana, Box, Zapier and more.

While the Hangouts ‘Meet’ feature has already been released, the ‘Chat’ app is yet to come. It is available through Google's Early Adopter Program as of now.

Earlier this month, Google launched the Meet app for web and iOS. Also read: Salman Khan to Launch His Own Smartphone Brand: All You Should Know About 'BeingSmart'