Google Duo Launches Invite Links, Making It Easier to Start a Group Video Chat

Google Duo

Video chats shouldn’t be a hassle. That’s why services like Google Meet and Zoom allow you to invite friends, coworkers, or strangers to a chat with a simple invite link. And finally, after a month of waiting, Google Duo joins the big dogs with its very own invite link feature.

The Google Duo team first announced link invites back in May, but the feature didn’t launch globally until today. Until now, users had to invite friends through their contact list, which is a lot more difficult than dropping an invite link into a Facebook or Instagram group chat.

When someone clicks your invite link, it’ll automatically open their Google Duo app (or take them to the app store to download Google Duo). From there, they can see who’s in the group chat, and choose to join the chat or decline the invite. If you want to invite some friends mid-call, just open the overflow menu (the white icon with three dots) and press the “Share Link" button.

We’re glad to see Google Duo finally implement its link invites system. But Google still needs to catch up on some of its latent promises. Group chats are still limited to 12-people, but the company is advertising 32-person chats in promotional emails. Also, the Google Duo web-based application still doesn’t support group chats, a feature that Google promised alongside invite links.

Source: Google via Android Police