June developments
Microsoft Teams has recently rolled out several updates and features aimed at improving the user experience. One of the useful options in this update is the team calendar that allows you to add time blocks for personal focus time or offline meetings. When you create a new meeting for your calendar within Teams, there is now a toggle in the Location line that lets you say it is not an online meeting. The support for breakout rooms on VDI now has organiser support and is available for public preview. This allows organisers to divide large meetings into smaller groups for more concentrated discussions. During meetings on video conferencing platforms, you now have the option to view the ‘Active Speaker’ in a higher resolution, allowing you to see them more clearly. This view is not automatically shown and must be selected from the View option during the meeting. With a Teams Premium account, users can now communicate with each other through the chat feature in the lobby before the meeting officially begins. This is a useful tool for discussing any pre-meeting details or simply connecting with colleagues before the actual meeting starts.
Cisco has announced a new feature called ‘Catch Me Up’ that utilises artificial intelligence to provide a speedy summary of all the significant aspects of a video meeting, including any references, actions taken, and other important information. In addition, Webex is introducing smart meeting summaries designed to provide quick access to critical action points and items. Users can customise their summaries to focus on specific mentions of people or projects, saving time spent listening to meeting recordings or reading through transcripts. Meanwhile, Cisco’s video messaging tool, Vidcast, receives AI-powered summaries that will include chapters on particular themes or areas and overall highlights, enabling users to skip to the exact parts they require.
Google Meet is adding a new option for easier access to popular tools. When you hover your mouse over your own video feed, you will be able to access video effects like fun filters or immersive backgrounds.
Google Meet has introduced a feature called companion mode check-in. This allows individuals joining a virtual meeting from a conference room to check in using their personal device so that everyone on the call can identify who is in the room rather than just seeing the conference room name.
Zoom has launched Zoom IQ, which is an AI-powered smart assistant. The first feature of Zoom IQ has been made available for some users to test. Meeting hosts can start an AI-powered summarisation of the current meeting, which will be emailed and posted to the Team Chat. The option to receive the meeting summary can be limited to the host only, the host and their account users, or extended to all meeting attendees (including external invitees). All participants will be notified when the summary is generated, and the host can pause the summary at any time if needed. This feature is offered as a trial for Zoom Pro, Zoom Business, Zoom One Business Plus, Zoom One Enterprise, Zoom One Enterprise Plus, and Enterprise Bundle accounts.
A new feature has been added that enables continuous synchronisation of meeting chat files and images. Any files or images shared during the meeting will now synchronise automatically with the dedicated group chat assigned for the meeting. This will enable participants to easily access these files and images after the meeting ends. Likewise, sharing files or images in the dedicated meeting group chat will automatically sync with the chat in the ongoing meeting. Zoom Mail Client now supports mobile email notifications for Android and iOS users. These notifications provide the sender’s name, subject line, and a body preview, allowing users to quickly glance at the email content. However, notifications for encrypted emails will be limited to a generic new email message if the app is not active. Users can toggle email notifications on or off in the mail settings within the Zoom app.
Unveiling the accuracy of transcription platforms in identifying English dialects
In the domain of transcription services, it is imperative to accurately capture the subtleties of different English dialects to deliver transcriptions of high quality. This is especially important for clients from diverse backgrounds or with specific requirements. Therefore, having a platform that can accurately transcribe a wide range of dialects and accents is essential. Our research focuses on the accuracy of transcripts for different dialects, and through our analysis, we’ve discovered helpful features that can benefit clients.
To learn more about our research, please visit our website and read our blog: https://www.diplomacy.edu/blog/can-ai-understand-our-language/
Are you planning an online meeting or event and need urgent advice?
Our ConfTech Help desk provides countries and organisations with immediate advice on how to organise and run online meetings and events. Get in touch with us at conftech@diplomacy.edu.
