SINGAPORE - Media OutReach - 9 July 2020 - Microsoft today
announced a set of new features in Microsoft Teams that make virtual
interactions more organic and engaging, supporting the global shift into a more
hybrid model of work, learning and life.

With the new
Microsoft Teams features, users can enjoy greater connectivity, reduced meeting
fatigue and more inclusive meetings, all while saving time. These features --
including together mode, video filters, live reactions, touchless meeting
experiences and more -- start rolling out in preview today and will be fully
available later this year.

"Over the last few
months, we have worked with experts across virtual reality, AI, and
productivity research to better understand the future of work. These findings,
published here, have been useful
in guiding us to design these new features. Our research has shown that many of
us feel less connected since moving to remote work, hence we want to bring a
more human element into online meetings. We also want to streamline their
experiences across apps and devices, with technology like AI to save time and
improve overall well-being, which is of highest importance during this time,"
said Rosalind Quek, General Manager, Modern
Work, Asia Solution Sales at Microsoft Asia.

Enhancing connection
between users and reducing meeting fatigue

• Together
  mode: Microsoft Teams will
  now have a new meeting experience that uses AI segmentation technology to digitally place participants
  in a shared background, making it feel like they are in the same room with
  everyone else in the meeting or class. The mode makes meetings more engaging,
  and helps users pick up on non-verbal cues that are so important to human
  interaction. Together Mode with auditorium view is rolling out now and will be
  generally available in August.
• Dynamic View: Building
  on the meetings enhancements announced
  last month, the dynamic view allows users to personalize the view to suit their
  preferences and needs. This includes the ability to show shared content and specific
  participants side-by-side. 
• Video filters:
  Before joining a meeting, users can now use filters to adjust lighting levels and soften
  the focus of the camera to customize their appearances.
• Reflect
  messaging extension: Employee well-being
  is critical in ensuring productivity -- this new feature allows managers,
  leaders and teachers to easily check in on how their teams or students are
  feeling through questions in an online poll. This will be available in the
  coming weeks. 

Making meetings more
inclusive, engaging and effective for teams and students

• Live reactions: Users can now react during meetings using
  emojis, supplementing non-verbal cues that can be difficult to notice in online
  meetings. Microsoft
  is also bringing PowerPoint Live Presentations to Teams in the future,
  enabling more audience engagement.
• Chat bubbles: The Chat feature has become a lively space
  for idea sharing without interrupting meeting flow. Chat bubbles allow all
  chats sent during a Microsoft Teams meeting to appear on the screens of all meeting participants, making the chat more central to the conversation.
• Speaker
  attribution and translation: With
  speaker attribution, everyone knows who is speaking. Live transcripts and
  translations, available later this year, provide a way to follow what has been
  said in more than one language.
• Interactive
  meetings for more than 1000 participants: Microsoft Teams meetings can
  now support 1,000 participants, and up to 20,000 participants to watch a
  presentation or discussion.
• Microsoft Whiteboard updates: Whiteboard in Microsoft Teams will soon be updated with new features
  including faster load times, sticky notes, text, and drag-and-drop
  capabilities. These will enable team members without access to a touchscreen to
  participate in whiteboarding sessions.  

Helping users
streamline their work and save time 

• Tasks app: Tasks app in Microsoft Teams provides a new unified view of tasks across Microsoft To Do, Planner and
  Outlook, whether a user is on desktop, web or mobile.  
• Suggested replies: Microsoft
  Teams
  chats will now include suggested replies, using assistive AI to create short
  responses based on the context of the previous message. This feature will roll
  out this month. 
• Touchless meeting
  experiences: As some people return to physical workspaces,
  touchless meeting experiences in shared spaces are more important than ever. Microsoft Teams now allows people to join meetings and share
  content to meeting room devices from their own mobile device or PC, with the
  same capabilities available on Surface Hub later this year. The Teams mobile app
  will also include a new room remote, with additional meeting controls,
  and voice commands to join and leave a meeting or call someone from their
  address book. Another experience will allow users to wirelessly cast to
  any Teams Room, collaboration bar or Surface Hub device, enabling seamless
  ad-hoc and in-person collaboration for people in a shared space.

To get started on the preview, users may log in to their personal Microsoft account on the Microsoft Teams mobile app,
available for download on the iOS or Android app store. General availability of the new features is slated for later this year.

For more information, see here to find out more about these new
features.

About Microsoft

Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT" @microsoft) enables digital
transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Its
mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to
achieve more.