Tired of zooming into work via webcam and staring at colleagues’ faces? This mixed-reality application for Microsoft’s Teams collaboration platform is a step toward the metaverse promised land, at least for desk-bound knowledge workers. Strap on a HoloLens 2 headset and pop into a meeting as an avatar that sounds and (sort of) looks like you. Mesh for Teams—part of Microsoft’s broader metaverse platform still under development—also includes pre-built meeting spaces and is accessible from smartphones and laptops as well. A goal, says Jeff Teper, president of Microsoft Collaborative Apps and Platforms, is to make online meetings “more personal, engaging, and fun.” People can go “beyond the current binary choice of video or no video.”
More Must-Reads From TIME
- Why Cell Phone Reception Is Getting Worse
- The Dirty Secrets of Alternative Plastics
- Israeli Family Celebrates Release of Hostage Grandmother
- We Should Get Paid for Our Online Data: Column
- The COP28 Outcomes Business Leaders Are Watching For
- The 100 Must-Read Books of 2023
- The Top 100 Photos of 2023
- Want Weekly Recs on What to Watch, Read, and More? Sign Up for Worth Your Time