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Signal Desktop

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Velocity5.0

Private messenger desktop client with end-to-end encryption.

signal.org ↗

Signal is quietly rebuilding group governance while polls and pins push into everyday chats

messagingprivacygroup-adminbeta-channelsocial-features
◆Current state
The desktop beta line is shipping a steady run of user-facing social features: polls extended to one-to-one chats, admin deletion of recent group messages, an explicit End Group action, disappearing call events, and reorderable sticker packs. Each release carries one or two concrete changes rather than a bundle. Pinned chats also moved from 4 to 10.
◆Where it's heading
Two threads run through the window. One is group administration — admins gained message deletion and a way to formally close a group, turning groups from open-ended threads into objects with a lifecycle. The other is bringing lightweight social mechanics from group chats down into individual ones. Both extend the surface without touching Signal's privacy model.
◆Prediction
Expect the group-lifecycle work to continue with more admin controls, and for the features currently landing in desktop beta to promote into the stable line on the same weekly-to-biweekly rhythm.

◆Recent moves

  1. 7d ago

    Signal Desktop 8.21.0 beta: tweaks and fixes

    A beta with no named features — the release notes cite small tweaks, fixes and performance work. It is a pause in the otherwise feature-carrying beta cadence.

    View source ↗
  2. 14d ago

    Disappearing call events and reorderable sticker packs

    Call events now honour disappearing-message settings in the chats where they are enabled, closing a gap where call history outlived the messages around it. Sticker pack reordering is minor by comparison but continues the personalisation thread.

    View source ↗
  3. 20d ago

    Group admins can end a group

    End Group gives admins a way to close a group for good — no further messages, calls or invites. It is the clearest step yet in treating groups as objects with a lifecycle rather than threads that simply go quiet.

    View source ↗
  4. 28d ago

    Polls arrive in one-to-one chats

    Polls, previously a group mechanic, now work in individual chats. It is a small extension of an existing feature and part of the pattern of pushing group-style interactions into direct conversations.

    View source ↗
  5. 1mo ago

    Admin message deletion and 10 pinned chats

    Group admins gained the ability to delete recently sent messages, with visible attribution of who removed what, and the pinned-chat limit went from 4 to 10. The admin deletion is the substantive half and starts the group-moderation thread this window continues.

    View source ↗