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Zoom is one of the most popular video conferencing platforms in the world, with over 300 million daily meeting participants. Zoom offers a variety of features to make your meetings more effective, such as screen sharing, breakout rooms, polls, and live captions. But what if you could have an AI assistant that can help you with your meetings even more?
That’s where Zoom AI Companion comes in. Zoom AI Companion is a generative artificial intelligence tool that can enhance your Zoom experience in many ways. It can help you catch up on missed meetings, summarize chat messages, generate meeting notes, provide feedback on your performance, and more. And the best part is, it’s available at no extra cost if you already pay for Zoom.
In this review, I will explain what Zoom AI Companion is, how it works, what benefits it can bring to you and your team, and how to get started with it. I will also share some tips and best practices on how to use it effectively. By the end of this review, you will have a clear idea of whether Zoom AI Companion is right for you and how to make the most of it.
What is Zoom AI Companion and How Does It Work?
Zoom AI Companion is a new feature that Zoom announced on September 5, 2023. It is a generative artificial intelligence tool that can interact with you and provide various services throughout the Zoom platform. It uses large language models from Zoom itself, as well as Meta, OpenAI, and Anthropic to power its AI capabilities. Large language models are advanced AI systems that can generate natural language texts based on inputs or queries. They are the same technology behind generative AI chatbots like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google’s Bard, and Microsoft’s Bing.
Zoom AI Companion can be accessed through different parts of the Zoom platform, such as Team Chat, Meetings, Phone, Email, Whiteboard, and more. Some of its features are available now, while others will be rolled out over the coming months. Here are some of the main features that Zoom AI Companion can offer:
Catch up on missed meetings: If you join a meeting late or miss it entirely, you can ask Zoom AI Companion questions through a side panel to get an AI-generated answer on what you missed. You can also get a recording of the meeting with highlights and smart chapters, as well as an automated meeting summary to share with attendees or those who couldn’t attend.
Summarize chat messages: If you have a long chat thread in Team Chat, you can ask Zoom AI Companion to summarize it for you in a few sentences2. This can help you get the gist of the conversation without reading through all the messages.
Generate chat messages: You can also use Zoom AI Companion to help you write chat messages based on the context of the chat thread2. You can adjust the tone and length of the message with a click of a button before sending it.
Provide feedback on your performance: By spring 2023, Zoom AI Companion will be able to give you real-time feedback on how well you are doing in your meetings. It will also coach you on how to improve your conversation and presentation skills.
Assist with meeting preparations and debriefing: By early 2024, Zoom AI Companion will be able to help you prepare for upcoming meetings by surfacing relevant information from previous meetings. It will also help you debrief after meetings by suggesting action items and follow-ups2.
And more: Zoom says that there are more features on the roadmap for Zoom AI Companion that will be announced later.
What are the Benefits of Using Zoom AI Companion?
Zoom AI Companion can bring many benefits to you and your team when using Zoom for your meetings and communication. Here are some of the main benefits:
Save time: With Zoom AI Companion, you don’t have to spend time reading through long chat threads, taking notes during meetings, or writing follow-up emails. You can let the AI do these tasks for you and focus on more important things.
Stay informed: With Zoom AI Companion, you don’t have to worry about missing important information or updates from your meetings or chats. You can easily catch up on what happened and get the key points without having to watch or read everything.
Improve your skills: With Zoom AI Companion, you don’t have to guess how well you are doing in your meetings or how to improve your communication skills. You can get objective feedback and coaching from the AI and learn from your mistakes and successes.
Enhance your collaboration: With Zoom AI Companion, you don’t have to work in silos or lose track of your team’s progress. You can share meeting summaries, chat messages, action items, and more with your team and keep everyone on the same page.
How to Get Started with Zoom AI Companion?
Zoom AI Companion is turned off by default, so you need to enable it first before you can use it. The account owner or admin can choose to enable Zoom AI Companion for the whole account or for specific users or groups. Users can also see when Zoom AI Companion is being used or activated and opt out if they want.
To enable Zoom AI Companion, follow these steps:
Log in to your Zoom account and go to the Settings page.
Under the Meeting tab, scroll down to the Zoom AI Companion section and toggle the switch to turn it on.
You can also customize the settings for Zoom AI Companion, such as choosing which large language model to use, enabling or disabling specific features, and setting permissions for users or groups.
Once you enable Zoom AI Companion, you will see a new icon in the Zoom app that indicates that it is active. You can click on the icon to access Zoom AI Companion and use its features.
Tips and Best Practices for Using Zoom AI Companion
To make the most of Zoom AI Companion and use it effectively, here are some tips and best practices to follow:
Be clear and specific when asking questions or requesting services from Zoom AI Companion. The more details you provide, the better the AI can understand your needs and generate accurate and relevant responses.
Review and edit the outputs from Zoom AI Companion before using or sharing them. The AI is not perfect and may make mistakes or generate inappropriate texts. Always check the outputs for accuracy, quality, tone, and style before sending them to others or publishing them online.
Respect the privacy and consent of your meeting participants and chat partners when using Zoom AI Companion. Make sure they are aware that you are using an AI tool and that their audio, video, chat, or other data may be processed by the AI. You can also ask for their permission before recording or sharing their data with others.
Experiment with different features and settings of Zoom AI Companion to find what works best for you and your team. You can try different large language models, enable or disable specific features, and adjust the tone and length of the texts. You can also give feedback to Zoom on how to improve Zoom AI Companion and suggest new features or ideas.
Conclusion
Zoom AI Companion is a powerful and innovative feature that can enhance your Zoom experience in many ways. It can help you catch up on missed meetings, summarize chat messages, generate meeting notes, provide feedback on your performance, and more. And it’s available at no extra cost if you already pay for Zoom.
If you are looking for a way to make your meetings more productive and engaging, you should definitely give Zoom AI Companion a try. It can save you time, keep you informed, improve your skills, and enhance your collaboration.
To get started with Zoom AI Companion, just enable it in your Zoom account settings and access it through the Zoom app. And don’t forget to follow the tips and best practices I shared in this review to use it effectively.
FAQs:
What is Zoom AI Companion, and how does it work?
Zoom AI Companion is a generative artificial intelligence tool that enhances your Zoom experience. It uses large language models to provide various services within the Zoom platform, such as summarizing meetings, generating chat messages, and offering real-time feedback on your performance.
What are the main features of Zoom AI Companion?
Zoom AI Companion offers features like catching up on missed meetings, summarizing chat messages, generating chat messages, providing performance feedback, assisting with meeting preparations, and more.
How can Zoom AI Companion help me save time during meetings?
With Zoom AI Companion, you can delegate tasks like note-taking, summarizing conversations, and generating follow-up emails to AI, allowing you to focus on the core aspects of your meetings.
What are the benefits of using Zoom AI Companion for team collaboration?
Zoom AI Companion helps keep teams informed, improves collaboration by sharing meeting summaries and action items, and ensures everyone is on the same page.
How can I enable Zoom AI Companion for my Zoom account?
To enable Zoom AI Companion, log in to your Zoom account, go to Settings, navigate to the Meeting tab, and toggle the switch in the Zoom AI Companion section.
Can I customize Zoom AI Companion's settings?
Yes, you can customize settings such as choosing which language model to use, enabling or disabling specific features, and setting permissions for users or groups.
Are there any privacy considerations when using Zoom AI Companion?
Yes, it's important to respect the privacy and consent of meeting participants. Make them aware that AI is being used and may process their data. Ask for permission before recording or sharing their information.
How can I ensure the responses from Zoom AI Companion are accurate and appropriate?
Review and edit the outputs generated by Zoom AI Companion before sharing them. The AI may make mistakes, so it's essential to check for accuracy, quality, tone, and style.
What should I do if I encounter issues with Zoom AI Companion?
If you encounter issues or have suggestions for improvement, you can experiment with different features and settings and provide feedback to Zoom to help enhance Zoom AI Companion.
Is Zoom AI Companion available at an additional cost?
No, Zoom AI Companion is available at no extra cost for existing Zoom users who already pay for Zoom's services.
