Microsoft announced at Ignite, the new Facilitator agent – an update to the AI notes in Teams that works inside your meetings and chat and is designed to enhance collaboration and streamline the way teams work. It works similar to the AI generated notes after a meeting, but this works live alongside you and all participants can see it working live in the meeting.
How Facilitator works in Teams Meetings
Facilitator will take real-time notes during Teams meetings (not currently adhoc meetings or Meet Now), enabling everyone to co-author and collaborate seamlessly. This allows meeting participants to focus and engage more deeply in meetings, while ensuring alignment before the meeting concludes.
To enable this feature and use it a meeting, organisers can toggle AI-generated notes setting on or off when setting up a meeting in the Teams calendar or enable it during the meeting via the Notes section in the meeting.
Once enabled, a notification appears in the meeting chat to inform all participants. This also activates meeting transcription, with a notification to users… During the meeting, participants can click on Notes to open a pane where the AI generated live notes are created every few minutes, organised by topics and follow-up tasks.
What is nice about this is that participants can edit the notes inline or assign tasks to users, with attributions indicating whether the content is AI-generated or user-edited making these Co authored notes by humans and AI!
After the meeting ends, notes continue to be accessible in the Recap tab and are stored in the OneDrive of the user who enabled real-time notes. These notes are contextual to the meeting transcript, ensuring relevance and accuracy.
Future Capabilities in Meetings
As the Facilitator agent gets developed futrther, Microsoft say that it will be able to take on more tasks to enhance meeting effectiveness. Soon, it will also manage meetings from end-to-end, including managing agendas, moderating discussions, and handling action items automatically or semi-automatically
In early 2025, the real-time note-taking experience will also expand to Microsoft Teams Rooms. Employees will be able to invite a Teams Room to a meeting, allowing all participants to see real-time notes however, they have joined the meeting. This feature will also be available for ad-hoc meetings, enabling in-office discussions to be captured seamlessly.
How Facilitator works in Teams Chats
As of now (November 2024), the Facilitator Agent creates and maintains up-to-date summaries of what it considers valuable information within Teams chats. This includes key decisions, action items, and open questions, helping groups stay focused, align faster, and resolve issues efficiently.
AI-generated notes are automatically enabled when creating a new chat. For existing chats, users can toggle it on via the Notes icon which is shown at the top right of the chat window as shown below.
When notes are enabled, a notification appears in the group chat to inform everyone that notes are being taken in real time.
To access the notes users simply click on the Notes icon in the top right corner of the chat to show a summary of the chat thread, organised by topics with corresponding decisions, action items, and unanswered questions.
These are continuously updated as the chat conversation progresses.
Availability and access
Facilitator is already in public preview now for desktop (Windows/Mac), web, and iOS/Android. To access the public preview of the new Facilitator agent, meeting hosts need a Microsoft 365 Copilot license.
Facilitator will only be available to users that have app permission policy for Microsoft apps set to “Allow all apps”. The Facilitator App will become available soon for Admins to see and manage in Teams admin center. For more information about app permission policies, see Manage app permission policies in Microsoft Teams – Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Learn
Microsoft recently announced “Catch up” feature coming to Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Teams. Whilst similar functionality can be achieved with your own “custom prompt”, this feature will make it easy for anyone (especially those new to Copilot) to catch up!
This new feature will be available later this month (June) in the Copilot chat within Microsoft Teams or from the web interface at https://copilot.microsoft.com.
Catch up in Teams – Image (c) Microsoft.
This new feature, which is rolling during June and July 2024, brings the following capabilities and benefits.
Stay Informed: The ‘Catch up’ tab provides a centralized place for updates on important meetings and documents.
Action-Oriented insights: Each update comes with a suggested prompt, enabling users to delve into details and take immediate action.
Seamless Integration: Accessible directly within Microsoft 365 and Teams, enhancing productivity without switching contexts.
This new feature should make it easier for users to stay on top of tasks and collaborations with others, making it another valuable addition for Copilot for Microsoft 365 and Teams users.
Availability of Catch up
The rollout begins late June 2024 and is expected to complete by late July 2024. Users will need a Copilot for Microsoft 365 license to access this feature
Microsoft have announced the Surface Hub 3 and along with a way to breathe new life into Surface Hub 2S with an upgrade module for the Surface Hub 2S.
Surface Hub 3 Transforms Meetings and Collaboration
Surface Hub 3 is the latest all-in-one hybrid meeting and collaboration device that combines the best of Microsoft Teams Rooms, Windows, and Surface Hub. It offers a consistent and seamless experience across all meeting spaces, from small huddle rooms to large conference rooms and brings new AI tools to enhance your hybrid meetings and collaboration sessions.
Surface Hub 3
In this blog post, I will explore some of the key features and benefits of Surface Hub 3, and how it compares to its predecessor, the Surface Hub 2S as well as availability, pricing and how to upgrade from Hub 2S to Hub 3.
What is Surface Hub 3?
Surface Hub 3 is a device that combines the functionality of a digital whiteboard, a large touchscreen display, a video conferencing system, and a Windows 10 PC. It is designed to empower teams to work together more effectively, whether they are in the same room or across the globe.
Surface Hub 3 – Video (C) Microsoft.
Like the predecessor, Surface Hub comes in two sizes: fifty inches and eighty-five inches. Both models have a high-resolution, 4K PixelSense display with an anti-glare coating that makes content visible in any lighting condition. They also have two microphone arrays and speaker pairings that deliver clear audio and optimize sound based on device orientation. Additionally, they support active inking with up to two Surface Hub Pens Surface Slim pens, providing twenty points of multitouch for immersive on-device collaboration.
Surface Hub 3 runs on Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows, which means that it offers a consistent user interface and feature set with other Microsoft Teams Rooms devices. This makes it easy for users to transition from one meeting space to another, without having to learn different systems or adjust settings. Users can also pair Surface Hub 3 with Microsoft Teams Rooms certified peripherals in larger conference rooms, such as external microphones, speakers, cameras, and more.
Surface Hub 3 also supports some unique capabilities that set it apart from other devices. For example, it allows users to physically rotate the device between portrait or landscape mode at any time, to suit their needs and preferences. It also enables users to move the device around the building with a Steelcase Roam Stand and an APC Charge Mobile Battery (both sold separately), offering flexibility and mobility.
Existing Surface Hub 2S customers can also upgrade their existing Surface Hub 2S devices to Surface Hub 3 with the Surface Hub 3 Pack, which includes a new processor cartridge and a software license.
How does Surface Hub 3 improve over Surface Hub 2S?
Surface Hub 3 is an evolution of Surface Hub 2S, which was launched in 2019. While both devices share some similarities, such as the sleek design and the Windows 10 Team edition operating system, Surface Hub 3 offers several improvements over its predecessor.
Here are some of the main differences between Surface Hub 3 and Surface Hub 2S:
Performance: Surface Hub 3 has a faster processor and graphics card than Surface Hub 2S, resulting in a smoother and more responsive experience. It also has more memory and storage capacity, allowing it to handle more complex tasks and applications. In short, Microsoft say that Surface Hub 3 has a 60% CPU performance increase, and a 160% GPU graphics performance increase gen-on-gen. This helps its support more inclusive, media rich meetings, higher definition meetings and hardware powered AI features like background noise cancellation and studio video effects.
Software: Surface Hub 3 runs on Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows – offering a true Teams experience whilst still providing leading edge Windows 11 capabilities which means that Surface Hub 3 can access more apps and services from the Microsoft Store, as well as use Windows Hello for biometric authentication. It also means that Surface Hub 3 can benefit from new features and updates that are released for Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows.
Features: Surface Hub 3 also has unique features that are not available on Surface Hub 2S. These include smart rotation, portrait mode, improved mobility options, persistent chat, Teams Front Row layout support, Cloud IntelliFrame (a smart video feed that separates participants into individual boxes), video segmentation (a feature that removes backgrounds and adjusts video sizes), and Copilot in Whiteboard (a feature that helps generate and organize ideas). Surface Hub 3 also works in portrait mode.
Surface Hub 3 with Teams Front Row
Why Surface Hub 3?
Surface Hub 3 is not just another collaboration device. It builds on 8 years of innovation, the power of Microsoft Team, AI, and Windows 11. Surface Hub 3 continues to offer versatile and inclusive solution that can transform huddle rooms, meeting rooms and collaborative spaces. Surface Hub brings:
Consistency: Surface Hub 3 brings a consistent experience across all meeting spaces, regardless of the size or configuration of the room. It runs a variant of Teams Rooms on Windows meaning the device can be be used for different purposes in different spaces and in multiple modes – bringing whiteboarding, presenting, hybrid meetings, or for co-creating in open spaces.
Simplicity: Surface Hub 3 brings simplified your meeting setup and management since it is powered by Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows platform. People can easily start or join a meeting with one touch, share content wirelessly, and control the device with voice commands. IT can also manage Surface Hub through the Microsoft Teams admin center and the Microsoft Teams Rooms Pro Management Portal.
Engagement: Surface Hub 3 enhances the meeting engagement and participation experience with new AI-powered features that Surface Hub 3, Teams and Copilot bring to life. This makes remote attendees feel more connected and visible, thanks to the Cloud IntelliFrame and video segmentation features. You can also make your brainstorming sessions more productive and creative, thanks to the Copilot in Whiteboard feature.
Innovation: With Surface Hub 3, you can unleash your team’s potential and foster a culture of innovation, thanks to the Surface Hub 3’s design and capabilities. You can experiment with different modes of interaction, such as touch, pen, voice, or gesture. You can also explore new ways of working, such as rotating the device, moving it around, or pairing it with other devices.
Upgrade your Surface Hub 2S to Surace Hub 3
Organisations with Surface Hub 2S devices can also upgrade their existing Surface Hub 2S devices to Surface Hub 3 with the Surface Hub 3 Pack, which includes a new processor cartridge and a software license. This brings Microsoft Teams Rooms – including the latest Teams Rooms layouts and management capabilities to existing Surface Hub 2S. It provides a power upgrade with faster performance, improved graphics and added storage and allows for Portrait mode on the Surface Hub 2S 50”.
Availability of Surface Hub 3
Surface Hub 3 is available for preorder now, and it will start shipping in early 2024. There are the same two models to choose from – fifty-inch or eighty-five-inch version.
Pricing for Surface Hub 3
Pricing for Surface Hub 3 is similar to the Hub2S and is listed at (RRP) being
Surface Hub 3 85” with 2x Surface Hub Pens and 1x Smart Camera. £24,649.00
Surface Hub 3 50” with 1x Surface Hub Pen and 1x) Smart Camera. £ 9,299.00
Surface Hub2S 50″ Upgrade Pack to Hub 3: £2749.00
Volume and sector discounts will be available as usual through your Microsoft Surface Hub Reseller.
Surface Hub 3 is the ultimate device for meetings and collaboration. It combines the best of Microsoft Teams Rooms and Surface Hub, offering a consistent and seamless experience across all meeting spaces. It also enables you to leverage AI to enhance hybrid meetings and collaboration sessions.
