YouTube’s interest in the podcasting space is quite explicit at this point, and the latest effort is offering grants to make video podcasts that are more native to the network.

The first indication that YouTube Music might be able to share songs to Instagram and Snapchat emerged in November of 2020. Snapchat sharing finally launched for YouTube Music on iOS in October and it’s now coming to Android.

Alongside other responses, Google announced this evening that its Voice VoIP service and Fi MVNO are waiving calling fees to Ukraine. The company also provided an update on Project Shield protections.

In late 2020, Google introduced a VPN for its Google One subscription that provides additional Drive/Photos storage, extended support, and other perks. After initially being Android-only, the Google One VPN is now launching on iOS.

Back in October, Google updated its excellent Recorder app with a redesign. Version 3.5 of Google Recorder is rolling out today with a handful of Material You tweaks and a Quick Settings tile on Pixel.

At the start of last week, Google began rolling out the “new view” redesign of Gmail on the web. It has now hit our accounts, and here’s a look at how it works, as well as other details we’ve found while using it this afternoon.

After testing for some time, YouTube Music is finally bringing the song/video switcher to the Now Playing UI of the web client.

After rolling out a redesigned “Add to playlist” UI, YouTube Music is adding a “From your library” section to artist pages that is similar to something that was found in Google Play Music. 

As the creators of Chrome OS, Google is a big proponent of Progressive Web Apps (PWA) especially to expand what the platform can do. Google shared today that desktop PWA installs have seen a 270% growth spurt since the beginning of 2021.

Google is working to make Spaces in Chat more versatile and feature rich. It will eventually replace Currents, and Google is now rolling out features like setting Space Managers and guidelines.

Since 2010, Google has published Transparency Reports to demonstrate “how the policies and actions of governments and corporations affect privacy, security, and access to information online.” One such report shows the impact the war in Ukraine is having on how people use Google products, including Maps.

Last year, Google Messages in India started automatically categorizing your texts into categories. This auto-group capability is now starting to appear for users in other parts of the world.

Following Android, Google Home for iOS is now starting to roll out the ability to remote control your Chromecast with Google TV from your phone. Version 2.48 also makes tweaks to Google Wifi stats and graphs.

The latest tweak to YouTube Music sees the mobile apps get the new “Add to playlist” UI that was first introduced on the web app. It’s still in testing and not yet widely rolled out.

Google was originally supposed to start the migration away from classic Hangouts to Chat in October 2019 for Workspace (previously G Suite) users. That switch was delayed, and the multi-stage plan did not start until June 2020. The final phase is now set for late March.

“Checks” is the latest project from Google’s Area 120 incubator to help developers of mobile apps “create a safer digital ecosystem by simplifying the path to privacy compliance.” 

Messages picked up a navigation drawer redesign and Google Photos integration at the start of this month, but it has yet to become widely available even on the beta channel. Users that have it noticed today that image upload capability has disappeared. 

With the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, Google introduced a “Grammar check” capability in Gboard that “works entirely on-device to preserve privacy, detecting and suggesting corrections for grammatical errors while the user is typing.” It’s now appearing on other Pixel phones.

After widely rolling out iOS-style install indicators on the homescreen, Google now specifies what version of “Android OS” is required to install an app on the Play Store.