Telegram announced new features related to channels, including better discovery of similar channels, emoji customization for reactions and stats for stories to compete better with WhatsApp. The Meta-owned platform rolled out its broadcast channels feature globally in September.
When a user joins a new Telegram channel, the app will now suggest similar channels they can join to better surface various channels.

August stories became available to all app users. The latest update adds also a feature of reposts on own pages for the users and channels. Besides the text, you will have the opportunity to add to a repost images or commentary on video.

Channels can also add custom emojis based on the level they have. Premium users can boost any channel of their choosing — they get one boost with their subscription. Based on the number of boosts, channels are assigned a level to unlock features such as the ability to post stories. It's a slightly complicated and gamified process.

For channels that already have the stories feature enabled, Telegram will now let them see stats for different stories, including numbers of views, reactions, and shares, as well as a timeline of activity.

Last month, Telegram also introduced a giveaway feature where channels can host giveaways for Telegram Premium and other gifts to welcome new followers or bolster their following.

Besides channel-related features, the voice-to-text feature for Telegram audio messages is being extended with free users capped at two transcriptions per week. In addition, the updated version includes features such as a better highlighting block for code in messages, a two-sided wallpaper for premium users that will be visible in both parties of a chat, and an improved view of topics in groups.

Telegram has had channel features for quite some time now, but the app is now forced to innovate because of WhatsApp's rollout of a similar feature. Last month, Mark Zuckerberg said on his broadcast channel on WhatsApp that the channels feature had crossed the mark of 500 million monthly active users. For context, WhatsApp has more than 2 billion monthly active users and Telegram has over 800 million monthly active users.