Google has expanded group video calling on Duo to support up to 12 people at once. Previously, the video calling service only allowed up to eight persons in a group video call. The move comes amidst rising usage of video call services due to the COVID-19 pandemic that has forced people across the globe to work from home.
This is a server-side change from Google and has already been rolled out to all Duo users. This means you can start making group video calls with up to 11 additional participants using the service right away. The announcement was made by Google"s Senior Director of Product & Design Sanaz Ahari on Twitter:
We are grateful that Duo is helping users see their loved ones all around the world. We recognize group calling is particularly critical right now. We have increased group calling from 8 participants to 12 effective today. More to come. #AllInThisTogether #COVID19
— Sanaz (@sanazahari) March 27, 2020
While Google Duo is available on the web, Android, and iOS, only the mobile clients support group video calling. The new limit makes Google Duo"s group video calling service better than WhatsApp which only allows for group video calls of up to 4 people. It, however, pales in comparison to FaceTime which allows up to 64 participants in a group video call.