Microsoft Teams Gets Hybrid Meeting Features, Including CarPlay Support

The pandemic has caused a huge shift towards remote working, although many people are still eager to return to the office. As such, the future of work can be a hybrid environment. To help take this into account, there is a set of features to strengthen hybrid meetings.

Among these is the Cameo feature for presentations in PowerPoint Live. You’ll be able to add your Teams camera feed to your deck, and you’ll be able to choose how and where you want to appear on the slides. Microsoft plans to roll out this tool early next year.

In early 2022, an AI-powered feature called the Speaker Trainer, which listens to your speech and offers advice on your pace and when to check in with participants, as well as a reminder when you interrupt someone, also arrives in early 2022.

Microsoft will be adding an automatic lighting correction tool in the coming months. At the same time, it will update the companion mode in Teams mobile. The latter will allow in-person attendees easy access to features such as live chat and feedback, as well as meeting controls and connected devices, such as cameras.

Speaking of which, Microsoft Teams will soon be made up of Jabra, Neat, Poly, and Yealink. AI-powered active speaker tracking will use visual cues as well as audio to help determine who is speaking and focus on them. Multiple video streams will place meeting participants who are in the same physical space in their own video pane. The People Recognition Tool, on the other hand, can identify meeting participants and display their profile names below their video pane.

Manufacturers will have access to these features in the coming months. Microsoft expects the tools to be rolled out as updates over the next year. They could play a key role in putting all participants in hybrid meetings on an equal footing, whether they are at home or in a conference room.

Elsewhere, an Outlook RSVP feature that will arrive in early 2022 will let you signal whether you’re attending a meeting in person or remotely to help organizers prepare (Google Calendar). You will also be able to mark when and where you work during your working hours. You can also reserve shared workspaces through Outlook or Teams.

Meanwhile, Apple CarPlay will get audio-only support for teams starting at the end of the month. So if you get stuck in traffic at the start of a meeting, you can still join through Siri.