Microsoft Mesh: Revolutionizing Virtual Meetings in Teams
Microsoft is taking virtual meetings to a whole new dimension with its innovative 3D meetings feature in Microsoft Teams. Today, Microsoft Mesh, a mixed reality platform, officially exits its beta phase and becomes integrated with Teams, allowing people to have virtual meetings in both immersive VR environments and without the need for VR headsets.
Having experienced the beta version of Microsoft Mesh within Teams at the end of last year, I find the experience reminiscent of a corporate version of AltspaceVR, a social VR platform that Microsoft acquired in 2017 and subsequently closed last year. The 3D meetings in Mesh within Teams work best with VR headsets, and currently, Microsoft only supports Meta Quest devices.
With Mesh, you can participate in 3D virtual meetings, and the impressive spatial sound effect allows for private conversations as if you were physically moving around a real office, distancing yourself from other colleagues in the virtual environment. The 3D spaces are also customizable and offer gaming options, such as beanbag toss or ice-breaking questions to remotely connect with colleagues you haven’t met yet.
The integration of Microsoft Mesh into Teams provides access to all the standard Mesh features, including 3D spaces. If you want to deploy a custom 3D space, a Teams Premium license will be required. I first experienced Microsoft Mesh nearly three years ago, and even then, I believed it was the “future of virtual meetings in Microsoft Teams.” While Microsoft Mesh still remains a platform for developers to create VR/AR experiences, its integration with Teams seems like a natural step forward.
Nevertheless, the question of how readily this form of virtual meetings will be adopted by companies remains. Microsoft states that Accenture, BP, Takeda, and Mercy Ships are already using Mesh, but this is just a fraction of the companies that rely on Teams every day. The integration with Teams will undoubtedly expedite the process, but Mesh already seems to be heading towards becoming a feature of Teams rather than a standalone platform.
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