LINE Thailand today unveiled new insights into user behavior on LINE OpenChat, revealing how shared interests bring people together and transform online conversations into everyday communities. Spanning five key categories—Entertainment, Studies, Job/Career, Lifestyle, and Chit-chat Community—LINE OpenChat provides a space for people to discover information, exchange ideas, and connect with others who share their passions.
To make these connections easier to find, LINE has introduced a redesigned OpenChat experience on the central third tab of the LINE application. The campaign “Join tab 3 to meet your community” supports the initiative by encouraging users to discover communities based on their interests in one convenient place.
Built on the philosophy “Where everyone has their own place,” LINE OpenChat now reaches more than 24 million monthly active users (MAU) and generates over 2.25 billion monthly visits.
From Shared Interests to Everyday Communities
Nadhakriz Kanchanamantana, Head of LINE OpenChat, said: “LINE OpenChat launched in 2018 as LINE Square before evolving into the service it is today. Our goal has always been to give people a way to connect beyond their existing circles of friends and acquaintances through shared interests. LINE OpenChat is currently available in three markets: Japan, Thailand, and Taiwan. “In Thailand, we see five major interest categories emerging among our users:
- Entertainment: Artists, TV series, and fandoms.
- Studies: Study groups, note-sharing, and exam preparation.
- Job & Career: Career advice, job opportunities, and professional knowledge-sharing.
- Lifestyle: Sports, health, pets, food, and travel.
- Chit-chat & Communities: Casual conversations and the exchange of ideas across a wide range of interests.
“What we have learned is that people may initially join LINE OpenChat because they share an interest, but as they chat, exchange ideas, and participate in activities together, they begin to feel a sense of belonging and build meaningful relationships within their communities. The journey evolves from finding like-minded people to discovering a place where they belong, and ultimately building lasting community connections.
“LINE OpenChat has also played an important role in helping people share information and support one another during major events in Thailand, including the COVID-19 pandemic, floods, and earthquakes. Bringing LINE OpenChat to the third tab of the LINE app marks another important step in making these communities easier to discover and access. Previously, users might have needed to know a chat room’s name, search for it, or follow a link to join. Now, they can start with their own interests and explore new communities in one place. This brings LINE OpenChat closer to becoming part of users’ everyday lives.”
One month after the redesigned OpenChat Tab launched, LINE OpenChat recorded significant growth in user engagement. As of September 30, 2026, the platform’s monthly active users had increased from 20 million to 24 million. During the period, the new tab recorded 66.9 million visits per day, while users joined OpenChat rooms 7.4 million times. Overall monthly usage sessions rose from 1.8 billion to more than 2.25 billion.
These results demonstrate a positive response to the redesigned experience, which makes it easier for users to explore communities and find conversations that match their interests.
Bringing OpenChat to Tab 3: Discover, Explore, and Participate in One Place
Tharawit Disyawongs, Director of Product, said: “The key challenge in developing the new OpenChat Tab was to create a seamless user journey that takes people from their interests to the right communities, all in one place. We designed the third tab to make exploring and discovering communities more intuitive. It organizes communities by interest, recommends related groups, and highlights trending topics and conversations that are attracting attention. This allows users to find content and participate in communities that resonate with them, whether their interests lie in education, fandoms, sports, gaming, or travel.”
“We have also enhanced existing features to make the experience safer and more convenient. Fraud & Scam Protection Popups provide additional warnings and security measures to help users identify and avoid scams. Threads make it easier to follow focused discussions within a main OpenChat room, while AI Summary automatically summarizes conversations so users can catch up on important messages and stay informed.”
“LINE OpenChat is also preparing to roll out a series of new features to enhance the experience for both users and community creators. These include Content Discovery & Recommendations for You, which will make it easier for users to discover and choose communities that match their interests; Redesigned Category Icons & Avatars, featuring refreshed category icons and a more diverse, fun selection of community avatars aligned with LINE OpenChat’s new design; and Reactions & Paid Emoji Support, which will introduce more ways for users to engage in conversations through message reactions using a wider range of emojis.”
Bringing Communities to Life, Online to Offline
Beyond making communities easier to discover, LINE is planning a broader range of activities to keep communities active and encourage users to participate on an ongoing basis.
Ake Punyasee, Head of Content Business Marketing & Partnership, said: “Our next step is to build awareness and invite more users to experience LINE OpenChat through the “Join tab 3 to meet your community” campaign. The campaign makes it easier to start exploring communities based on personal interests.
“The journey begins with Find Your Interest, where users can explore categories, recommendations, and trending topics. They can then Find Your People by discovering others who share their passions, before taking the next step to Join the Communityand engage through conversations, polls, sharing, and other interactive activities.”
“At the same time, LINE OpenChat will continue to bring communities to life across fandoms and entertainment, health, gaming and esports, travel, and everyday interests. Activities will range from polls and community challenges to exclusive privileges and experiences that bring online communities together in the real world.”
LINE OpenChat has already established a track record of connecting communities through a variety of initiatives. These include LANDDOM, which brings artists and fans closer through shared experiences. Highlights include a live chat with JAONAAY, in collaboration with Sony Music Thailand, and the “Museum of Awakening Hours”activity featuring PUN, in partnership with Universal Music Thailand, which gave the “Always” fandom opportunities to engage more closely with the artist.
LINE OpenChat also launched The Space Maker Challenge 2026, inviting university students to build communities around shared interests in response to real-world challenges presented by Samsung Thailand, Royal Canin, and Trip.com. The initiative attracted more than 120 teams, with 15 selected to advance to the final round.
LINE OpenChat’s Next Ambition: Helping Every Interest Grow into a Thriving Community
Looking ahead, LINE OpenChat will continue to expand its communities through four key strategic pillars, reimagining the traditional consumer funnel to build deeper connections between consumers and the brands and services they love, turning them into core fans. These pillars include:
- Discover – Making Communities Easier to Find: Increasing opportunities for users to discover LINE OpenChat and communities that match their interests through the OpenChat Tab, curated categories, and trending topics.
- Activate – Driving Engagement: Expanding interest-driven activities and campaigns across fandoms, entertainment, and trending topics to encourage conversations, interaction, and shared experiences.
- Grow – Empowering Community Creators: Enabling users, students, creators, and key opinion leaders (KOLs) to progress from community members to community creators and administrators, while supporting the growth of new communities around a diverse range of interests.
- Connect – Expanding Networks Through Partnerships: Building collaborations with brands and partners across Entertainment, Education, Sports, Lifestyle, and Utility to create new activities and experiences for communities.
Together, these four strategic pillars will help LINE OpenChat evolve from a platform where people discover others who share their passions into a space where users can actively participate, build meaningful relationships, and grow alongside the communities they care about, guided by the philosophy “Where everyone has their own place.”