WhatsApp now supports large groups, adds new chat features 

WhatsApp, the messaging platform owned by Meta Platforms Inc, is teeing up a brand new manner to prepare group chats with the purpose of linking people who have a common interest. The company disclosed its plans for communities, a collection of group chats linked to a certain group so that all community members could be alerted of any new update or any new j formation. Testing for the new feature will start in a few months with a global rollout to follow ahead, the company said.

The company also introduced new messaging features for more than two billion users, which will be available in the coming weeks. Existing group chats are not automatically added to the community and remain in the WhatsApp chat section. But if a  group of friends is from your old college dorm (or your school) you can start a community with your group and others, including people you don't necessarily know.

The chat groups will remain private but users can also receive messages directed to the community at large. Sending messages to all community members will be allowed to the community administrators only. Chat will continue to be protected by end-to-end encryption. Users' profiles will only be displayed if someone knows their phone number or if the user belongs to the same group. And users can control who sees the profile picture.