Summary
- Google Messages is undergoing a significant UI refresh, with leaked previews revealing a redesigned ‘Start chat’ menu featuring pill-shaped elements and Material You dynamic selection feedback.
- This update, while not introducing new features, continues Google’s trend of iterative UI improvements, following recent tweaks to read receipts, search interface, message bubbles, and contact photo options.
- The new ‘Start chat’ interface, currently not live in the latest beta, is expected to launch alongside the recently revamped search UI, bringing a more consistent and visually appealing design to Google Messages.
Google Messages
is no stranger to simple UI changes that iteratively make the platform experience much cleaner overall. In 2025 alone, the messaging giant has been spotted making tweaks to the way read receipts and the search interface appear, all while rolling out support for assigning emojis or monograms as contact photos.
Additionally, less than a week ago, the messaging giant also rolled out a subtle UI tweak that changes the way message bubbles appear on the platform, with a WhatsApp-like message detail screen reportedly in the works.
Related
Google Messages’ new chat bubble animation bounces onto the stable channel
Enhance your conversational flow
Now, the messaging giant’s latest tweak seems to be building upon the spruced-up search interface, bringing a significant visual update to the start chat interface.
Pointed out by Android Authority after digging through messages.android_20250304_00_RC00.phone.openbeta_dynamic, the new UI isn’t live for users yet, but its polished state suggests that it soon could be, and it brings a lot more pill elements to the UI.
Currently, when you try to start a new chat on Google Messages, you’re greeted by a “Create group” pill at the very top, followed by an option to chat with Gemini and a list of your contacts in alphabetical order. The new layout, however, deploys a new card-based system where all contacts under one alphabet sit within a large pill with rounded corners, with each contact separated by a line, as seen in the screenshots below.
The pill takes center stage
The text box to type in contact names, phone numbers, or emails also sits within a pill, and the same goes for the Gemini shortcut, making this an all-around solid facelift for the platform.
Further, tapping a contact’s name when creating a new group chat should provide clear visual feedback, with the individual card dynamically changing shape with Material You elements upon being selected. And once all contacts have been selected, the subsequent ‘Add group name’ screen also adopts the pill-shaped text field, maintaining interface consistency across pages.
These aren’t monumental changes by any means, but they do highlight the tech giant’s aim to consistently refine and modernize the Google Messages experience, especially when stacked with other UI tweaks that have already rolled out, and others that are yet to arrive.
The new ‘Start chat’ interface isn’t live yet, and while it is unclear when it might roll out, it’s safe to speculate that it will launch alongside the search UI revamp.
