WhatsApp Adds '@ all' Mentions and Poll Upgrades to Group Chats

WhatsApp today announced a series of updates to group chats, including an "@all" mention feature, three new poll upgrades, and a faster way to spin off new groups from existing ones. The most notable addition is @all, which lets a group member alert everyone in a chat at once instead of tagging people individually. WhatsApp says the feature is meant for important, time-sensitive messages, such as school or office closures, event deadlines, or last-minute changes to plans. In groups with more than 32 members, only admins can use @all. The mention will surface even in muted chats, though WhatsApp says users can mute @all specifically in their notification settings if they want to opt out. Polls are also gaining three improvements. Poll creators can now set an end time that automatically locks voting once it passes, hide voter names so participants can respond without others seeing their choices, and edit a poll's question for up to 15 minutes after posting it to fix typos or add clarity. WhatsApp is also simplifying group creation. A new "Create a similar group" option lets users start a new group chat populated with members from an existing one in a single tap, rather than adding participants one by one. WhatsApp suggests the feature for splitting off side conversations, such as planning a surprise party away from the group being surprised, or diving into a specific topic without cluttering the main chat. Today's changes come as a continuation of updates introduced earlier this year, when WhatsApp added group message history, member tags, and event reminders. WhatsApp has more than 100 million users in the U.S. and over 3 billion globally. Popular StoriesWhatsApp Beta Adds Green Dot to Show Who's OnlineWhatsApp appears to be introducing a new visual indicator that shows when a contact is online, according to WaBetaInfo. The feature adds a small green circle to a contact's profile photo when they're active in the app, and which disappears the moment they leave, all updated in real time. The indicator is now being tested for the WhatsApp iPhone app in TestFlight after it debuted on Android...WhatsApp Beta Reveals iCloud Backup Alternative for iPhoneTuesday July 14, 2026 3:06 am PDT by Tim HardwickWhatsApp is developing a first-party cloud storage option for chat backups on iPhone, providing users with an alternative to iCloud for the first time, according to app tinkerer WABetaInfo. Code found in the WhatsApp beta for iOS (version 26.28.10.16), available through TestFlight, suggests that users will eventually be able to pick their preferred backup destination directly from the app's...WhatsApp Begins Rolling Out New Username FeatureWhatsApp has started rolling out its new username feature, reports WABetaInfo. Some users who reserved their username have started receiving a notification that their username is active, and that they can now use it to send and receive messages to other users without revealing their phone number. When someone creates a username, WhatsApp will notify people who already have an active chat with...