What's new in Microsoft Teams Public Preview & Targeted Release

Chat in Microsoft Teams town halls

Encourage engagement between event attendees, presenters, and co-organizers by using chat, now available in Teams town halls. Select Chat   in the meeting controls to join the conversation. To learn more, see Chat in a town hall in Microsoft Teams.

Chat privately in a town hall with event group chat

A private event group chat between organizers, co-organizers, and presenters is now available in Teams town halls. Chat in an event group chat before, during, and after a town hall. Event group chats can't be seen by attendees. To learn more, see Chat in a town hall in Microsoft Teams.

Apply filters when searching for content related to specific people

Search a name in the Teams search bar and select Messages, Files, Group chats, or Teams and Channels below the search bar to filter results related to that person. When you chose a filter, you'll only see results for that content type. 

Sensitivity labels in Teams events

Add an extra layer of security to a Teams webinar or town hall if confidential information will be shared by adding a sensitivity label. To add a label, open the event in your Teams calendar. In Details, select Sensitivity  ​​​​​​​ and choose a label from the dropdown menu. To learn more, see Sensitivity labels for Teams meetings.

Balance language interpretation volume

Balance language interpretation volume to hear more interpreted audio or original audio. In your meeting controls, select More actions > Language and speech > Language interpretation  . Then, select a language and adjust the Balance volume slider. To learn more, see Use language interpretation in Microsoft Teams meetings.

Turn off town hall and webinar emails

When you schedule a town hall or webinar, you can turn off Teams attendee emails before publishing the event. In the scheduling form, go to Setup > Details and turn the Enable attendee emails toggle off. This setting can't be changed after the event is published. To learn more, see Manage webinar emails in Microsoft Teams or Schedule a town hall in Microsoft Teams.

Intelligent meeting recap notifications in Teams

Get notified when an intelligent meeting recap is ready to view and select the notification to go right to it. To manage the notification settings, select Settings and more   > Settings   in Teams. Then, select Notifications and activity ​​​​​​​> Apps > Meeting Recap. Intelligent recap features are available with Teams Premium or a Copilot for Microsoft 365 license. To learn more, see Meeting recap in Microsoft Teams. 

Find people and content faster with enhanced search

Type a person's name and a keyword in the Teams search bar for relevant suggestions that help you quickly find the content you need.

Teams app icon in the Mac menu bar

Take quick actions from the new Teams app icon in the Mac menu bar. Select the Teams app icon to change your presence status, start a new chat, and more. To learn more, see Take quick actions in Microsoft Teams from a Mac.

New minimized presenter window

When you share content in a Teams meeting, your meeting window will minimize to a smaller view. See how your shared content appears to others, view raised hands, and more. To learn more, see Present content in Microsoft Teams meetings.

Make emoji your own with your preferred skin tone

In a chat or channel post compose box, select Emoji, GIF and Stickers   > Emoji > Hand gestures  . Then, right-click an emoji and select a skin tone. To learn more, see Send an emoji, GIF, or sticker in Microsoft Teams.

Translate back and forth between two languages

Now, translators can switch their translation direction during a Teams meeting. Interpreters can translate between two languages by choosing the language they're currently speaking at the bottom of the screen. To learn more, see Use language interpretation in Microsoft Teams meetings.

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Copilot now considers meeting chat in responses

When you prompt Copilot in a meeting, it will now base its responses on both the meeting transcript and chat. To learn more, see Use Copilot in Microsoft Teams meetings.

"Files" tab in chat is now "Shared"

Select Shared, previously called Files, in a Teams chat to view content shared in that conversation. Browse files, recordings, and web links that have been sent to you or by you in that chat. 

Rename a team's general channel

You can now rename your team's general channel to better reflect your team's needs and make it easier to find in the teams and channels list. Team owners and members with the appropriate permissions can rename the general channel. To learn more, see Manage team settings and permissions in Microsoft Teams.

Same chat, more details

The new chat details pane gives you all the info you need, without leaving the conversation. Just open a Teams chat and select Open chat details   to view pinned messages, search for specifics, and more. 

Time detection in Copilot chats

Need updates or highlights from a specific timeframe? Copilot can help with that. Try it out by asking "What were the highlights from last month?" To learn more, see Use Copilot in Microsoft Teams chat and channels.

Minimized meeting window improvements

When you minimize your meeting window or start presenting, you can now view up to four participants in the presenter window. You can also completely minimize or expand the presenter window. To learn more, see Enhanced presenter and attendee experience with the expanded gallery view in Teams.

Streamlined feedback experience

Now, when you submit feedback or suggest a feature in Teams desktop or web, it'll be through the Cloud Policy service for Microsoft 365 instead of the Microsoft Teams policies for a more efficient feedback process. To learn more, see Give feedback in Microsoft Teams.

Find shared content in chat

Quickly access shared links and files in a Teams chat by selecting the Shared tab. Use the search bar to find specific content, or filter results by selecting the Recent, Files, or Links tabs.

Show or hide the Discover feed

To show or hide the Discover feed in your channels list, select Settings and more > Settings and turn the Show Discover in your channel list toggle on or off. 

Your emoji just got personal

Customize and upload your own unique emoji in Teams to react with or send in chat. To upload a custom emoji, select Emoji, GIFs, and Stickers  in a message compose box. Then, select Emoji > Your org's emoji   > Add emoji  . Choose an image or GIF file and select Add emoji.

Search results now include chat messages

When you search in Teams, the results will now include messages. Filter the results to show messages only by pressing the Enter key and selecting Messages beneath the search bar. To learn more, see Search for messages and more in Microsoft Teams.

Keep inactive channels hidden

Teams now automatically detects and hides your inactive channels. To view hidden channels, select Teams   and select See all channels under a team. Select Hidden to see the team's hidden channels. Manage which channels you see by hovering over a channel and selecting Show or Hide.

Don't miss a file

Files attached to a meeting invite in Microsoft Outlook for Windows or Outlook for web are now visible in your Teams calendar on the desktop app.

Presenter orderability for webinars 

Customize the order in which webinar presenters are shown on the event page. Just open the event details from your Teams calendar and select Setup > Presenter bios. Then, drag the names in the order you want. To learn more, see Customize a webinar in Microsoft Teams.

Control your channel notifications

Fine-tune the chatter in your channels by (1) opting out of notifications of all subsequent updates in a channel conversation in which you've participated, or (2) opting in to get notified of updates to a conversation in which you haven't previously participated. Select More options   next to a channel post and turn on/off notifications for the rest of the messages in that thread. To learn more, see Customize channel notifications in Microsoft Teams.

All the channel information, all in one place

Get a quick overview about a channel using channel cards, available on Teams for desktop and web. Hover over a channel name in the header or wherever a channel is mentioned to see the channel description, the time of last activity, the team name, and info about members. Channel cards also provide a shortcut to notification settings, owner channel management, and the channel roster.

Set custom sound notifications  

To help you stay focused, prioritize tasks and messages quickly, and avoid distractions, you can now adjust the sound on your Teams notifications. Assign different sounds to different kinds of notifications, such as urgent messages, or mute notification sounds when you’re busy or in a meeting. Go to Settings and more   at the top right of Teams, and find options to customize your notification sounds in the Notifications and activity menu.

Get a glimpse into files from the thumbnails

Now, you can see what's in a file even before you open it. Check out a visual preview of a file from its thumbnail in the chat or channel it's shared in. To learn more, see Send a file, picture, or link in Microsoft Teams.

VDI improvements in Teams

The new VDI solution for Teams offers better performance, reliability, and security. There are also more advanced meeting capabilities and a simpler app update experience on Teams VDI. To learn more, see New VDI solution for Teams.

Collaborative notes for channel meetings

Work together with members of your channel to update channel meeting agendas, notes, and action items using collaborative notes. Collaborative notes stay in sync with To Do and Planner, making it easier than ever to stay on track. To learn more, see Use collaborative meeting notes in Teams.

Recommended channels when you join a team

When you join a new team, you can see which channels the team owner recommends and choose to only see the channels relevant to you.

Request to join a shared channel

If you have a link to a shared channel in your organization, you can request to join that channel. Channel owners will be able to view and respond to your request.

Prevent webinar sharing on social media

When you organize a public webinar, choose whether attendees can share the link via social media. To prevent sharing on social media, open the upcoming webinar in your Teams calendar, go to Setup > Details, and turn the Allow sharing to social media from event site toggle off. To learn more, see Schedule a webinar in Microsoft Teams.

Recap for transcript-only meetings

Intelligent recap is now supported after transcribed meetings that weren't recorded. If your meeting was only transcribed, you'll have access to name mentions and AI-generated meeting notes and tasks. Intelligent recap features are available as part of the Copilot for M365 license. To learn more, see Meeting recap in Microsoft Teams.

Transcript storage improvements

All transcripts are now stored in OneDrive for Business. Anytime you open a transcript in Teams, you'll see the OneDrive for Business transcript copy. Future meeting transcripts will no longer be saved in Exchange Online; all transcripts will be stored on OneDrive for Business. To learn more, see View live transcription in Microsoft Teams meetings.

Streamlined transcript deletion

If you delete a transcript in the Teams app, both copies of the transcript (OneDrive for Business and Exchange Online) will be deleted. If you delete a transcript from Stream, only the copy in OneDrive for Business will be deleted. To learn more, see Edit or delete a meeting transcript in Microsoft Teams.

Changes to default transcript permissions

Now, transcript owners can download or delete a transcript file while participants can only view the transcript. Owners can also manage which participants can download, view, and edit the transcript. To learn more, see View live transcription in Microsoft Teams meetings.

Presenter toolbar improvements

• When you're presenting in Teams, you can now select and drag the new drag bar on the presenter toolbar to move it anywhere on your screen. 
  
  

• Provide a better video sharing experience in a meeting by selecting Optimize in the presenter toolbar, a new setting that will help your content run more smoothly.

Keep your status the same while presenting

Keep your status from automatically switching to Do not disturb while presenting. In Teams, select Settings and more  > Privacy   and unselect the Set my status to do not disturb when I'm sharing my screen box.

Mute from the Windows taskbar

If you use Teams on a Windows device, you can now mute and unmute your Teams audio by selecting the mic icon on your taskbar.

Meet instantly in a group chat

Meet spontaneously with members of a group chat, without scheduling a meeting or ringing and disrupting others. Open a group chat and select Meet now at the top of the window. Members of the group chat will see that you've started an instant meeting and can join in from the chat. To learn more, see Start an instant meeting in Microsoft Teams.

Intelligent meeting recap for scheduled channel meetings

Intelligent meeting recap is now available after scheduled channel meetings. Browse meeting recordings by speakers and topics, access AI-generated meeting notes, and much more.  Intelligent recap features are available with Teams Premium or a Copilot for Microsoft 365 license. To learn more, see Meeting recap in Microsoft Teams. 

Do more from the compose box

Type a command into the compose box to change your Teams status, open settings, and more. First, type / into the compose box. Then, select or type a command from the Commands menu and press Enter or Tab on your keyboard. To learn more, see Use commands in Microsoft Teams.

Optimize videos when you're screensharing

Deliver higher quality video experiences while screensharing with video optimization. To optimize screensharing for video, bring your cursor to the top of the screen you're sharing and select Optimize from the presenter menu. To learn more, see Share content in Microsoft Teams meetings.

Stay aware of your meeting while you present

The improved presenter window helps you keep track of participant activity while you're sharing your screen or content during a meeting. In the presenter window, you can now see up to four participant videos, meeting notifications, and the content you're sharing. 

All your Teams accounts, all in one place

Sign into multiple work, school, or personal Teams accounts and swiftly navigate between them within the same Teams app. To learn more, see Manage accounts and organizations in Microsoft Teams.

• Add a new account in your Account manager in Teams by selecting your profile picture and selecting Add another account. Then, from your Account manager, choose a different account to switch between accounts.

• Join a meeting from a different account by selecting Change at the top of the meeting pre-join screen and choosing the account you want to join from.
  
  

Meeting recap has entered the chat

Now you can find meeting recap details in the meeting chat after a meeting ends. Conveniently review the meeting's transcript, assigned tasks, shared files, and more. Select View recap to access the rest of the recap. To learn more, see Meeting recap in Microsoft Teams.

View message translations in Teams chat

When someone sends you a message in a different language, Teams will suggest a translation to help you understand better. Change your translation language and other translation settings in Teams by going to Settings and more > Settings > Appearance and accessibility > Translation. To learn more, see Translate a message in Microsoft Teams.

More meeting context before you join

The newly designed meeting pre-join screen shows more details about internal meetings, including the meeting title, scheduled start and end times, and how many participants are already in the meeting. To learn more, see Join a meeting in Microsoft Teams.

Shared call history for delegates and delegators

We're continuing to improve shared line appearance capabilities, providing a more tailored experience for delegates and delegators. Shared line users will now be able to see shared call history records for the calls made or received on the delegation line. To learn more, see Share a phone line with a delegate in Microsoft Teams.

Keep up with Calendar updates from your activity feed

Calendar notifications are now available in your Teams activity feed. Get notified of new invites, updates and cancellations, or if someone forwards a meeting you've organized. To customize these notifications in Teams, go to Settings   > Notifications and activity > Calendar.

Make your best plans yet with Microsoft Planner

Stay on track and find all your tasks, lists, and projects in one place with Microsoft Planner.

Navigate the My Day, My Tasks, and My Plans sections to organize your daily to-do's, find specific tasks, and view your plans and projects. You can also pin plans you want quick access to, explore enhanced planning features with Teams Premium and Copilot, and more.

To use Planner, go to View more apps   on the left side of Teams and select Planner.

Explore the latest in your Discover feed

Catch up on relevant topics, people you work with, and channels you've joined in the new Discover feed in Microsoft Teams. Get updated on your organization as a whole, or just what's happening on your team. To check out the Discover feed, open Teams and select Teams   > Discover  . 

Meet with a new and improved gallery view in Teams

The new gallery view shows everyone in your meeting window equally, whether participants have their cameras on or off. You can change how many participants you see at a time, and move or hide  your video from your view. You can also prioritize videos to focus more on participants with their cameras on. To learn more, see Using video in Microsoft Teams.

An easier way to make channels

80% of teams have only one active channel, which can decrease engagement. To improve this, we're simplifying channel creation within teams, making it quicker and easier to manage. In Teams, select Teams   > Join or create a team   > Create channel  . 

New, simplified team creation

Now, you can quickly create a public or private team from scratch or a template. It's also easier to apply sensitivity labels to your teams, so you can better protect your data. In Teams, select Teams   > Join or create a team   > Create team  . To learn more, see Create a team from an existing team or group in Microsoft Teams.

See more people at once with large gallery view

No need to toggle between different layouts. Now, you can see more people during meetings on Teams for web, which can display up to nine videos at once in large gallery mode. 

Decorate your background with AI

Turn your camera on in a Teams meeting and decorate your real-life background with AI elements in Teams Premium. Choose from several different themes, like Celebration or Clean up, to apply them to your background. To learn more, see Decorate your background in Teams meetings.

Express yourself in Teams chat

Easily find the perfect emoji, GIF, or sticker to send in a Teams message with the newly designed compose box. In the compose box, select Emoji, GIFs, and Stickers   to choose from your most recently used expressions, or search for something different in the search bar. To learn more, see Send an emoji, GIF, or sticker in Microsoft Teams.

Find your files in OneDrive for Teams

In the new Teams, OneDrive is replacing Files, the app where all your Teams files are stored. View shared, personal, and channel files easily by selecting OneDrive on the left side of the new Teams. To learn more, see Explore the Files list in Microsoft Teams.

Forward chat messages

Share chat messages in the new Teams by simply hovering over the message, selecting More options ... > Forward,and entering the recipients. Add an optional message to give more context. To learn more, see Forward a message in a Teams chat.

Keep your channel in the Loop

Use Loop components when you post in any private, public, or shared channels to make collaboration even easier. When you post with a Loop component, all channel members can see and contribute to it. To learn more, see Send a loop component in a channel.

New Teams now available for web

Switch to the new Teams on web for a faster, simpler, and better experience. To try it out, go to Teams for web using Microsoft Edge or Google Chrome.

Cut through the noise with channel announcements

Call attention to your channel post by turning it into an announcement. When you create a new channel post, select Announcement. Then add a headline and color scheme to make your message stand out. To learn more, see Send an announcement to a channel in Microsoft Teams.

Search directly in chats and channels

Find what you're looking for in a specific chat or channel with the new in-chat and in-channel search experience. Use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + F (Windows) or Cmd + F (Mac) to open the dedicated search pane. To learn more, see Search for messages and more in Microsoft Teams.

A whole new virtual world

Dive into Teams immersive spaces and explore new virtual environments where you can meet and connect like never before. Join immersive spaces as an avatar by joining a meeting in Teams and selecting View > Immersive space from the meeting menu. There, you'll be able to customize your avatar, adjust your audio settings, and join. To learn more, see Get started with immersive spaces in Microsoft Teams.

New Teams support for VDI, GCC, and GCCH users

Experience design improvements, enhanced performance, and more in the new Teams, now available for VDI, GCC, and GCCH users. To start using the new Teams, turn on the Try the new Teams toggle on the top of your Teams window. 

See it all on Edge

Now when you open web links from your Teams chat, they'll automatically open in your Edge browser. A chat pane will appear in the Edge sidebar, so you can see the link and context side-by-side. To learn more, see Web links from Outlook emails and Teams chats open in Microsoft Edge.

Try the new Teams in Mac OS 

Experience new features and performance improvements in the new Teams, now available on Mac OS devices. 

Translate live transcripts for more inclusive meetings

Break down language barriers and view your meeting's transcript in a different language in Teams Premium. First, start transcribing your meeting. Then, in the transcript window, select Transcript settings  > Transcript language and choose the language you want the transcript translated to. To learn more, see View live transcription in Microsoft Teams meetings.