Google adds one-button group chats for Calendar meetings

Ever wish you could quickly share notes before a Google Calendar meeting, or follow up afterward? You can now. Google is trotting out updates to Workspace and G Suite users that let you easily create a group chat with everyone from your organization attending a given meeting. You just have to tap a button near the guest list to start the conversation directly from the event, whether you’re on the web or your phone.

This won’t work with people outside your organization. You may also have to be patient. Web users on a rapid release track are in the midst of a 15-day rollout that quietly began on September 20th, while mobile users and more cautious companies will have to wait until October 4th.

It’s a welcome move, if also an expected one. Google is increasingly unifying its Workspace web apps, including Gmail’s growing role as a hub for office conversation. The Calendar expansion is a logical extension — it could make Google’s chat service an easy choice for meeting organizers who want to message colleagues.