Microsoft is hopping on to the ‘Metaverse’ bandwagon. The tech giant will launch mesh for Teams in 2022 for making mixed reality possible in videoconferencing.
Microsoft joins the Metaverse race
Microsoft’s Teams was one of the biggest players in the virtual meeting platform when COVID-19 hit. With almost everything happening online, Microsoft is joining the Metaverse and bringing the taste of mixed reality to its platform. In its Microsoft Ignite 2021 event on Tuesday, Microsoft revealed that it will launch Mesh for Teams.
The announcement comes a little over a week after Facebook rebranded itself as Meta. As of now, Facebook is investing $10 billion on Facebook Reality Labs, the builder of the Metaverse. Hence, “think of the metaverse as a new version or vision of the internet. One where people gather to communicate, collaborate and share with a personal virtual presence on any device,” stated Microsoft.
All about Mesh for Teams
Mesh is a tool for collaborating online with others using holographic images or 3D avatars. Launching in March 2021, the enterprise-focused feature will help in creating metaverses for working and collaborating in work environments. Previously firms like Accenture used the platform for the on-boarding of new employees and collaborating across the world. But, with over 250 million active users per month, Teams will be the ideal platform for Microsoft’s Metaverse.
Hence with Mesh, organizations can make the best of immersive spaces for collaborating on projects and for mingling. “Mesh for Teams – which anyone will be able to access from standard smartphones and laptops to mixed-reality headsets. It is designed to make online meetings more personal, engaging, and fun. It is also a gateway to the metaverse. A persistent digital world that is inhabited by digital twins of people, places, and things,” said Microsoft.