Social media giant TikTok has enhanced its direct messaging with the launch of TikTok Group Chat, allowing users to create groups of up to 32 people for video sharing and interaction.

The new tool is designed to create a shared viewing experience, allowing users to watch, comment, and react to videos with other people in real time.

It could represent a significant move toward encouraging users to keep their conversations within the TikTok app, boosting engagement.

Businesses on the app may also view the 32-person group limit as a viable way to engage with their audiences. This feature could offer a new avenue for those hosting TikTok Live broadcasts to provide exclusive content to their most dedicated followers.

To ensure users feel secure, TikTok will offer muting and blocking options, along with the ability to report messages or entire chats that may breach the platform’s community guidelines. 

Additionally, the app will impose limits on the number of groups a user can create and restrict message forwarding to prevent misuse.

As well as TikTok Group Chat, the platform has introduced stickers in direct messages, which offer a way for users to interact and allow communities to design and upload custom stickers for shared use.

Notably, full access to these features is restricted to users aged 18 and over. For younger users, ages 13 to 15, group chat and direct messaging are not available. 

To ensure older teens, aged 16-17, can use the features safely, the social networking app has also implemented measures to limit interactions with strangers.

Specifically, teens can only join group chats initiated by friends, and they must have at least one mutual friend in the group to join via a link. When creating a group, teens must also review and approve new members by default.