My proposal:
Hangouts was activated in 2016 during my travel in Amsterdam I think, I thought it was a great idea, nevertheless thinking in the filosophy of couchsurfing, i see this tool was designed the perfect way to be used for people that doesn’t surf neither host… So CS grow up with many not hosts neither surfers. Hangouts is not nice in this way at all.
Hangouts should be a tool to join a host and a surfer that in that moment of the time could be hosting or surfering, or not, but had already the experience, so they have reviews (reviews that should be created just through host, surf, hangout or creator of events (events also should be created just by hosts and surfers). So a host or surfer that enter to hangouts looking to met visitor in the city, or other host, out of an official event, should be the focus of hangouts.
So; It would be nice to make stronger the community, in the way to encourage to be a host and surfer the world with our community… the limits I propose here in hangouts could help to get e cleaner tool tied to the end of the community that is to be host or surfer.
So the algoritm to try to use hangouts could be active just for surfers and hosts that use the app for this end at least X number of time per year (host or surf).
How to include the people that is not able to be a host in his city and what to create events, or hangout with other hosts and surfers?: Encourage to travel at least to the next city and surf!! (200 km out of your city to don’t hook the algorithm with neighbor friends 
#traveltheworld