Video conferencing company Zoom Communications has announced a range of new artificial intelligence powered tools, including photorealistic AI avatars capable of representing users during online meetings. The company disclosed on Tuesday that the avatars will become available later this month as part of a broader rollout of new AI driven productivity services.
The AI avatars, first introduced last year, are designed to replicate a user’s appearance, facial expressions and movements such as lip and eye motion during meetings. According to Zoom, the feature will allow participants to appear present even when they are not camera ready, and it will function both in live meetings and in asynchronous video messages shared through the platform.
In addition to the avatars, Zoom is introducing new office productivity applications including Zoom Docs, Zoom Slides and Zoom Sheets. The company said these tools will use meeting transcripts and other connected data to generate document drafts, spreadsheets and presentations automatically. The apps are expected to be available for preview later this spring.
Zoom also confirmed that an upgraded version of its AI assistant, Zoom AI Companion, will be integrated into the desktop application after previously launching on the web platform. The assistant will also be added to Workvivo and will connect with several enterprise tools such as Slack, Salesforce and Asana to allow users access information across multiple workplace systems.
As part of its AI expansion, Zoom is also introducing a meeting voice translator, tools for building custom AI agents using simple language prompts and technology to detect potential deepfake impersonations in audio or video during calls. The company said the updates reflect the growing demand for AI powered workplace software, as technology firms including Canva and Salesforce continue to add similar AI features to their digital collaboration tools.