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Google Messages is apparently testing capability for editing RCS communications exchanged between an Android smartphone and an iPhone. While iPhone users could previously edit iMessage talks, and Google Messages enabled Android-to-Android discussions to be updated, it looks that cross-platform chat editing will be available shortly. However, iPhone users are unable to modify RCS messages sent to Android users, and Apple may need to take steps to allow this feature. Cross-platform communication encryption is another feature that is scheduled to be introduced in the future.
Google Messages now provides a better user experience for edited chats
According to an Android Authority article, Google Messages now allows select users to modify RCS messages sent to iPhone users, a year after adding message editing functionality for Android-to-Android talks. However, there are a few significant limits when editing cross-platform RCS communications in Google Messages.
The Universal Profile 3.0 specification, released in March, finally included support for two capabilities that had been available in third-party messaging programs for some years: end-to-end encryption (E2EE) and message editing. The latter is already available to select Google texts users and seems to operate on texts received from an Android phone to various iPhone models running iOS 18.5 and iOS 26 developer beta, according to the newspaper.
While Google appears to have introduced support for the most recent RCS protocol, modified messages do not show correctly on an iPhone. Instead of viewing the modified message on the iOS Messages app, users will see the new message after the original, followed by an asterisk.
The new option to modify texts received from an Android phone to an iPhone appears to be slowly spreading out to customers. This might be because it is activated by a server-side switch, requiring users to wait until the capability is accessible.
When enabled on both platforms, users will have the same 15-minute message editing window as on iMessage and Google Messages with RCS. However, Apple has not said when message editing and E2EE compatibility, both of which are part of the Universal Profile 3.0 specification, would be introduced to the Messages app to improve cross-platform RCS discussions.
