How LinkedIn Teams Piloted SpatialChat for Internal Collaboration Across Multiple Spaces

The Context Behind Team-Led Experimentation

Within large enterprises, new tools are often introduced not through top-down mandates, but through bottom-up experimentation. Individual teams explore alternatives to existing workflows, testing whether new environments can improve collaboration, engagement, or team dynamics.

At LinkedIn, this experimentation took shape through multiple teams independently setting up SpatialChat spaces. Without a centralized rollout, adoption emerged organically across engineering groups, culture-focused teams, and internal committees. The goal was not to replace existing tools outright, but to explore whether a more interactive, spatial environment could offer a different kind of collaboration experience that moved beyond scheduled meetings and static communication channels.

A Decentralized Setup Across Teams

The implementation reflected this exploratory approach. Instead of a single, standardized environment, teams created their own spaces tailored to their needs. These included setups such as engineering collaboration rooms, culture committee spaces, and general-purpose environments.

In total, 72 teams were created, alongside 17 distinct spaces. Each space functioned as an independent environment, with its own structure and intended use. Some were likely designed for team discussions, while others focused on informal interaction or experimentation. This decentralized model meant that there was no single “event format” or shared structure. Instead, each team approached the platform differently, using it based on their immediate needs and curiosity.

Persistent rooms allowed teams to maintain these spaces over time, while spatial layouts provided a visual and interactive alternative to traditional communication tools. However, the absence of a unified structure meant that usage patterns varied widely.

How Teams Engaged Within the Spaces

Interaction within these spaces was driven by small groups and individual teams. Rather than large-scale events, activity was centered around team-level collaboration and informal interaction. Participants moved within spaces, explored different areas, and engaged in conversations based on proximity. Spatial audio enabled multiple discussions to occur simultaneously, creating an environment where interaction could happen in parallel rather than in a single thread.

Different teams experimented with different approaches. Some used spaces for focused discussions, while others explored them as informal gathering areas. The flexibility of the environment allowed for a range of interaction styles, from structured conversations to more casual exchanges.

Because there was no predefined format, behavior was shaped by how each team chose to use the space. This resulted in a wide variety of interaction patterns rather than a single, repeatable model.

What the Numbers Revealed

The scale of initial adoption was significant at a surface level. With 72 teams created and 17 spaces set up, SpatialChat saw broad exposure across different parts of the organization. Within these spaces, four active users were recorded, representing the core group engaging with the platform during its active phase. Total usage time across all spaces amounted to approximately one hour, reflecting the exploratory nature of the initiative.

Engagement was distributed across multiple environments rather than concentrated in a single space. This meant that activity was fragmented, with different teams interacting in isolated contexts rather than converging into a shared experience.

The absence of a single dominant use case also influenced how engagement developed. Instead of one high-traffic environment, activity was spread across several smaller spaces, each with its own level of interaction.

Exploring a New Mode of Collaboration

Despite the fragmented structure, the experiment highlighted how enterprise teams approach new collaboration tools. The ability to quickly create spaces and invite participants enabled rapid testing across different teams.

Spatial audio and movement-based interaction introduced a new dimension to collaboration. Instead of joining scheduled calls, participants could interact more fluidly, moving between conversations and engaging in smaller groups. This created opportunities for more natural interaction patterns, particularly in informal settings. Teams could simulate in-person dynamics, such as spontaneous discussions or small-group conversations, within a virtual environment.

The flexibility of the platform also allowed teams to adapt it to different contexts, from engineering collaboration to culture-driven initiatives. This demonstrated the range of potential applications within an enterprise setting.

A Snapshot of Enterprise Experimentation

LinkedIn’s use of SpatialChat reflects a common pattern in large organizations: broad, curiosity-driven exploration across teams. Multiple spaces were created, different use cases were tested, and teams engaged with the platform in their own ways.

Rather than following a predefined structure, the experience was shaped by individual team needs and experimentation. This resulted in a diverse set of interactions, highlighting both the flexibility of the platform and the variety of ways it can be used.

Ultimately, the initiative provided a snapshot of how enterprise teams evaluate new collaboration environments. By enabling teams to create and explore their own spaces, SpatialChat offered a sandbox for testing new ways of working together. In doing so, it demonstrated how interactive, spatial environments can open up new possibilities for internal collaboration, even when explored in a decentralized and experimental way.