nearby connect - making LinkedIn connections in group settings faster and effortless.
TIMELINE
Fall 2025
(1 Week)
ROLE
Product Designer
TEAM
Myself
SKILLS
Product Design
Mobile UX Design
Privacy-First Design
Visual Design
linkedin is not built for connecting with multiple people at once
At a UX conference, I met a lot of really cool designers. Naturally, we all wanted to connect on LinkedIn afterward, but the process was painfully slow and awkward.
We had two options: scan QR codes one by one (time-consuming and impersonal), or manually search for and type in everyone's names (tedious and error-prone). Either way, we spent more time fumbling with our phones than actually connecting as a group.
This friction between the moment of connection (when we were all together and excited) and the actual action (sending connection requests) got me thinking: LinkedIn is built for professional networking. Why does it make it so hard to quickly connect with a group of people in the same place at the same time?
SOLUTION HIGHLIGHTS
the solution: room-based networking for effortless in-person networking
discovery: incorporating nearby connect with linkedin's other existing features
Nearby Connect lives alongside LinkedIn’s existing connecting tools, like the QR code and Search, making it easy to discover and join rooms.
host flow: creating and managing rooms
Hosts can easily create and manage rooms, choosing visibility and settings that fit their needs.
host flow: managing rooms and connecting participants
Once everyone's in the room, the host can connect everyone and close the room.
participant flow: previewing and joining the room
Users can join a room by selecting from nearby options or entering a code shared by the host.
RESEARCH
looking back: linkedin's original "nearby" feature
Turns out, LinkedIn used to have a feature called Nearby, which allowed users to discover and connect with others around them via Bluetooth.
It was designed for spontaneous networking (exactly the situation I'm looking at!), but it was quietly removed a few years ago.
I did some research by reading through product pages and user posts, and a few themes stood out:
VAGUE PRIVACY MODEL
The feature relied on Bluetooth to detect nearby users, but it never made it clear who could see you or when. That uncertainty made people hesitant to turn it on.
AMBIENT VISIBILITY
Even though users had the option to toggle visibility, being “discoverable” to anyone nearby felt too exposed — especially in non-professional settings like cafés or airports.
LACK OF CONTEXT
Nearby showed a list of people w/o clarifying where or why they appeared. Without event-level context or mutual intent, the experience felt random, not purposeful.
LinkedIn’s former Nearby feature made it easy to connect with people who were physically close — perfect for quick, one-on-one exchanges. However, the feature was later removed, likely due to privacy concerns.
Still, the core idea had potential. In networking settings like conferences or meetups, there’s a clear gap: connecting with multiple people at once often feels clunky and repetitive. I wanted to bring back the spirit of Nearby in a more intentional, privacy-conscious way — one that enables spontaneous group connections without compromising control.
can proximity-based networking actually respect privacy?
This tension became the foundation for my redesign. I wanted to keep the spontaneity of meeting new people nearby, but give users more intentional control.
The key questions guiding me were:
How can users feel safe when connecting in physical spaces?
How can the system respect boundaries while staying simple?
What’s the right balance between visibility and friction?
To explore solutions, I considered several interaction models
OPTION 1: PROXIMITY-BASED AUTO DETECTION (SIMILAR TO PREVIOUS NEARBY FEATURE)
The system automatically detects nearby users and adds them to a list for potential connection.
PROS
Immediate, low effort, encourages spontaneous networking.
CONS
Feels invasive, users have little control over visibility, risks connecting people in contexts where they may not want to be discovered (e.g., at private events or public spaces).
This model prioritizes convenience over user agency, making it unsuitable for safe, intentional networking.
OPTION 2: QR-BASED INVITES
Users share a QR code to connect with others. Scanning the code adds them to a network.
PROS
Explicit, consensual action; users control who they connect with.
CONS
Already exists, doesn’t scale well for large events or casual networking, adds friction when users want to meet multiple people quickly.
While respectful of boundaries, this approach is too limited to support a dynamic networking experience.
OPTION 3: ROOM-BASED CONNECTIONS
Users actively create or join “Rooms.” Each Room has clear access rules.
PROS
Opt-in, scalable, easy to understand and visualize. Users have deliberate control over their visibility. Supports both small private groups and large public networking sessions.
CONS
Requires users to take an extra step to join, which could slightly reduce spontaneity.
Balances safety and agency — users decide when and with whom to connect, addressing the core privacy tension.
The room concept quickly stood out. It allows users to actively join or create spaces, making connections a deliberate, consensual action. Each room type has clear rules:
Anyone nearby can join – public, ideal for open networking sessions.
Room code only – private, for small groups or teams.
This approach gives people agency over their visibility, directly addressing the privacy concerns that motivated the redesign.
Finally, I looked for a natural entry point within LinkedIn. Since most users start networking by searching for people, I placed the feature directly in the search bar, beside the QR code icon, marked with a new triangular “Nearby” symbol.
DESIGN EXPLORATION
how does nearby connect work?
Nearby Connect has two perspectives: the host who creates the room, and the participants who choose to join the rooms.
HOST CREATES A ROOM
PARTICIPANTS PREVIEW AND JOIN ROOM
HOST CONNECTS EVERYONE
OUTCOMES
a faster, safer way to network!
By introducing rooms and intentional visibility, Nearby Connect transforms group networking from a tedious process into something that takes seconds. Since this is an exploratory design sprint rather than a launched feature, there are no metrics to measure. But the concept is built around solving specific problems:
FASTER GROUP NETWORKING
Instead of scanning codes or searching names one by one, users can connect with everyone in a room simultaneously. The entire flow takes less than a minute.
INTENTIONAL PRIVACY
Users only appear when they actively create or join a room. This gives them control over when and how they're discoverable.
CLEAR CONTEXT
Before joining, users see the host's name, title, company, and participant count. No mystery about who they're connecting with.
MOMENTUM PRESERVED
The fast interaction keeps the energy of the moment. You connect while you're still excited about the people you just met, rather than after the conversation has moved on.
For now, the value lies in demonstrating that group networking can be both fast and privacy-respecting—and exploring what that interaction would feel like.
REFLECTIONS
what did i learn from this project?
This was a design sprint focused on exploring a single idea: What if group connection was instant? Rather than extensive user research or testing, I worked from a personal frustration and designed a concept around it.
I also learned the importance of consent and privacy in social features. Speed matters, but not at the expense of user control. By making visibility intentional at every step (room-based discovery, preview modals, explicit confirmation), the feature can be both fast and trustworthy.