You'll be able to turn off your sound or video in Instagram Live Rooms
Instagram Live Rooms is getting a small but notable update.
During Live broadcasts, hosts will be able to mute their audio like you would in a Zoom or Google Meet call, and they'll also be able to turn off video for chats, bringing a vibe notably similar to the popular audio-based app Clubhouse.
Instagram launched Live Rooms in March, allowing users to chat with three people at once in a Live session, rather than just with one.
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"By giving people the option to mute their audio or turn off their video, hosts will have added flexibility for their livestream experience, as the added functionality could help decrease pressure to look or sound a certain way while broadcasting live," Instagram said in a statement emailed to Mashable. Live, the company added, gives creators a "quick, low-lift way to connect with their community and audience and have a real back-and-forth conversation."
Instagram is not the first to follow in Clubhouse's audio-forward footsteps — ICYMI, Clubhouse is basically an audio-based social media app that allows you to jump in and out of chats on a variety of topics. It's like tuning in to a live podcast recording.
In March, Mashable reported that Facebook — which owns Instagram — is working on a live audio feature for its Messenger Rooms. Reddit is also reportedly exploring a similar voice chat function.
Topics Instagram Social Media
Rachel Thompson is the Features Editor at Mashable. Rachel's second non-fiction book The Love Fix: Reclaiming Intimacy in a Disconnected World is out now, published by Penguin Random House in Jan. 2025. The Love Fix explores why dating feels so hard right now, why we experience difficult emotions in the realm of love, and how we can change our dating culture for the better.
A leading sex and dating writer in the UK, Rachel has written for GQ, The Guardian, The Sunday Times Style, The Telegraph, Cosmopolitan, Glamour, Stylist, ELLE, The i Paper, Refinery29, and many more.
Rachel's first book Rough: How Violence Has Found Its Way Into the Bedroom And What We Can Do About It, a non-fiction investigation into sexual violence was published by Penguin Random House in 2021.
