Zoom Unveils Cross-Platform AI Companion, Avatars, and Enhanced Productivity Features to Compete with Meeting Startups
At its annual Zoomtopia conference on Wednesday, the company unveiled a host of new offerings, including an advanced AI companion designed for seamless integration across various meeting applications. The update also includes features such as personalized notes, AI-driven scheduling, and customizable AI avatars that mirror users.
In an effort to stay competitive in the market, Zoom aims to challenge verticalized meeting startups and productivity suites with these new features. The company has previously provided an AI bot for transcribing and recording Zoom meetings, but cross-application notetakers like Read AI, Otter, Fireflies, Granola, and Circleback have made significant strides. To counter this, Zoom’s AI companion will now be compatible with platforms beyond its own, including Google Meet and Microsoft Teams, along with a feature for taking notes during in-person meetings.
Adopting elements from services like Granola, users will now be able to jot down their own notes during meetings, which the AI will later expand and organize. Additionally, Zoom is implementing cross-platform search capabilities, enabling users to access information across Google and Microsoft’s platforms.
In terms of calendar enhancements, the company is set to introduce a feature that suggests meeting times suitable for all attendees and offers a “free up my time” option for managing schedules more efficiently. Previously, calendar tool Clokcwise launched a similar feature to resolve scheduling conflicts.
Other upcoming features include proactive meeting recommendations, such as suggested tasks and agenda items for preparation, and a group AI assistant.
In the realm of visual representation, Zoom will introduce photorealistic avatars to its platforms. These avatars mimic user actions on video and serve as an alternative when users are not camera-ready. However, there are potential deepfake risks associated with misuse of these personas, which may prompt corporate IT departments to restrict their usage.
The avatar feature is slated for release to consumers by year’s end. Zoom hosts will also gain the ability to use AI avatars and Zoom Clips, an asynchronous video tool, to greet attendees in waiting rooms and explain meeting purposes.
AI technology will also power new live translation features. Furthermore, Zoom is set to launch an upgraded web interface with enhanced visibility for its AI companion, along with additional AI-powered functionalities such as a writing assistant for drafting emails and documents, and a deep research feature.
The company is also working on custom AI agents supported by the Model Context Protocol (MCP), higher bit rate and 60fps capabilities for Zoom meetings, and a new video management tool to handle video assets.
