Google sees Gmail as key to its collaboration plans
As demand for team messaging apps continues to blossom, it may seem like email's days as the main business messaging tool are numbered. Google, however, sees the future of its team messaging tool, Hangouts Chat, as closely entwined with email.
The company laid outs its thinking at last month’s Google Cloud Next with a focus on the integration of Hangouts Chat into Gmail, which allows users to jump into Chat without switching apps.
The idea is that, like all software tools, real-time team chat has limitations as well as benefits. Ease of communication can lead to information overload, and quick-fire conversations can become distractions – the same problems still associated with email, issues team chat was supposed to fix.