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Today, WhatsApp announced the official launch of guest calling, a feature that enables users to invite anyone to join a WhatsApp call, even if they don’t have a WhatsApp account.
According to WhatsApp, guests must always be approved by the call host before joining, whether it’s a one-on-one call or a group call with up to 32 participants.
Guests enter a waiting room before being admitted, and hosts can remove them at any time. Guests also cannot see other participants’ phone numbers, send messages, or invite additional people.
WhatsApp says guest calling supports features such as screen sharing, hand-raising, and emoji-based reactions. Guests can also join directly from a computer browser without installing the app.
Here’s WhatsApp on the new feature: To get started, navigate to the Calls tab in WhatsApp, select the ‘+’ icon, create a call link, and send it to the people you want to talk to—colleagues, classmates, or tutor—without having to worry about what apps they have.
Today’s launch follows WhatsApp’s expansion of testing a similar feature for text conversations earlier this year, allowing users to exchange end-to-end encrypted messages with people who don’t have a WhatsApp account. However, at that time, the feature didn’t support voice or video calls.
To get started, navigate to the Calls tab in WhatsApp, select the “+” icon, create a call link, and send it to the people you want to talk to – colleagues, classmates, or tutor – without having to worry about what apps they have.
Returning to today’s news, WhatsApp also announced it is working on integrations with Google Calendar and Outlook, which will allow users to create WhatsApp call links directly from their calendars and add them to event invitations. The feature will require a WhatsApp plugin and is expected to launch later this year.
To read WhatsApp’s full announcement, follow this link.
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