Discord plans Discoverable Server pages, with selected messages potentially appearing in web search

Discord’s stated goal is to bring useful information buried in its communities to the wider internet, according to an announcement quoted by Rock Paper Shotgun.

What server members can control

Under the reported plan, administrators can choose which channels participate, and members can opt out of making their own messages searchable, TechCrunch reports. Messages published on the web will not show usernames or avatars. Private servers, direct messages and group direct messages are excluded from the plan.

The member setting for Channel Messages will be off by default in the EU, UK, Canada, Brazil, Australia and South Korea, Rock Paper Shotgun reports, quoting Discord’s announcement. Elsewhere, it will be on unless members turn it off. Teen users are excluded and cannot enable the setting until adulthood, according to the same report.

Useful answers, wider exposure

Ash Parrish at Kotaku sees value in making community FAQs easier to find, but finds the default-on setting unsettling and plans to opt out herself. The Rock Paper Shotgun writer likewise welcomes easier access to information and individual controls, but worries that publicly available messages could be harvested for AI-related uses. On X, @vxunderground called the prospect “very bad”.