Microsoft Teams News

In this November edition of the Microsoft Teams Show, hosts Kristian McCann and Tom Arbuthnot break down the biggest Teams stories from the past month.

We also welcome special guest Ally Ward, M365 Product and Platform Services Manager at Norton Rose Fulbright, who reveals how she automated Microsoft 365 change management via Teams– cutting manual triage time substantially in the process.  

This Month's Topics

📧 No Teams Required – Email-to-Chat
Start Teams chats via email links, no account needed. Could this make Teams the go-to UC platform?

📍 Wi-Fi Location Tracking
Teams can auto-detect corporate Wi-Fi to update work location. Admins enable it and users opt in – smart coordination or workplace surveillance?

🏥 NHS Copilot Trial – 400,000 Hours Saved
Copilot could save NHS staff 43 minutes a day, scaling to 400,000 hours monthly. A trial has Microsoft thinking it could.

🤖 Teams Mode for Copilot
Move from solo Copilot research to Teams chat with context, or add Copilot to team conversations for smarter collaboration.

🛡 Teams Security
Microsoft revoked 200+ certificates after fake Teams installers delivered ransomware, showing continued vigilance for security.

🎥 Teams Rooms Updates
Tom runs through a host of Teams Rooms updattes that launched since the last show.

🤖 Claude in Microsoft 365
Anthropic’s Claude now competes with Copilot in M365, introducing multiple AI assistants – productivity booster or workflow headache?

Special Guest: Ally Ward
Ally explains how her ChangePilot process posts message center updates directly into Teams, streamlining communication, reducing errors, and supporting compliance – all while saving hours each week.

👇 Tell us in the comments which story caught your eye!

In this October edition of the Microsoft Teams Show, hosts Kristian McCann and Tom Arbuthnot break down the biggest Teams stories from the past month with the panel.

We also have a special guest Mark Webb, UK Home Office Lead Voice and Video Engineer, who reveals how he used Power Apps to transform Teams call management – reducing service request turnarounds from 5 days to just 6 minutes!

This Month's Topics

🤖 Microsoft Goes Multi-Model with Copilot
 Microsoft adds Anthropic's Claude to Copilot alongside OpenAI – is this a strategic shift or just giving enterprises more choice?

📱 Free Copilot Comes to Office Apps
 Microsoft is integrating free Copilot chat into Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook – but what's the catch?

💬 Teams Gets Unified Copilot Chat (With Limitations)
 Teams users get enhanced Copilot capabilities – but only if you have the M365 license. Is this creating more confusion?

🎭 Meet Your New AI Agents
 Teams and Office get new AI agents including Facilitator for meetings and channel-specific agents. Are we ready for "vibe working"?

📞 BT Wholesale Brings Operator Connect to AppSource
 With only 5.7% of Teams users having telephony enabled, could this partnership change the game?

💻 Neat and Cisco Adopt Microsoft's MTR-OS Platform

Special Guest: Mark Webb, UK Home Office Lead Voice and Video Engineer, shares his revolutionary approach to Teams call queue management. Using Power Apps and Azure automation, Mark built a self-service solution that reduced request turnaround from 5 days to 6 minutes.

Mark walks through the technical architecture, lessons learned, and offers advice for organizations looking to automate their own Teams processes.

👇 Let us know in the comments which topic stood out to you the most!

In this September edition of the Microsoft Teams Show, Kristian McCann and Empowering.Cloud's Tom Arbuthnot discuss with our expert panel about recent significant shifts in Microsoft's enterprise licensing, the integration of GPT-5 in Microsoft 365 Copilot, and Microsoft making its own AI models.

Microsoft is killing discounts withing enterprise agreements. 

Microsoft will scrap all volume licensing discounts for its online services in November 2025 - a shift that could drive costs up and negotiation leverage down for enterprise buyers.

The integration of GPT-5 with Microsoft 365 Copilot

Microsoft has announced it has rolled out GPT-5, OpenAI’s newest and most advanced AI model, across its flagship productivity, developer, and consumer platforms.

Microsoft's introduction of in-house AI models

Does Microsoft’s first in-house AI models signal a move to reduce Copilot’s reliance on OpenAI?

Plus, Tristan Gayford shares frontline experience on deploying Teams for global enterprises.

Hosted by the UC Today editorial team – tune in for the latest Microsoft Teams updates, expert takes, and real-world insights.

Let us know in the comments which stood out to you the most!

Thanks for watching, if you’d like more content like this, don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel.

You can also join in the conversation on our Twitter and LinkedIn pages.

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In this August edition of the Microsoft Teams Show, hosts Kristian McCann and and Tom Arbuthnot dissect some of the biggest Teams stories from the past month with the panel – from meetings on the move to AI that can see your screen.

Mercedes Enables Teams Video Calls While Driving

Teams meetings are now available on the go – but is this the future of mobile collaboration or a serious safety concern?

Teams Search Gets Smarter

SQL-style search is on its way – finally! But will it actually help users find what they need, or just add more complexity?

Threaded Conversations: Teams Borrows from Slack (Again)

Another Slack-like feature arrives – is this improving the experience or just Microsoft playing catch-up?

SharePoint Servers Under Attack

A major breach raises big questions for on-premises customers – and for Teams, which is tightly integrated with SharePoint.

Copilot Vision AI Can Now See Your Screen

Microsoft’s AI assistant just got a new set of eyes – but is this a game-changer or a privacy nightmare in the making?

Plus, we’re joined by special guest Robbie Warwick, UCaaS & CCaaS Transformation Leader at Accenture Song, who shares insights from his 20-year career — including leading a massive Teams transformation at the UK Home Office.

Hosted by the UC Today editorial team – tune in for the latest Microsoft Teams updates, expert takes, and real-world insights.

Let us know in the comments which stood out to you the most!

Thanks for watching, if you’d like more content like this, don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel.

You can also join in the conversation on our Twitter and LinkedIn pages.

Join our new LinkedIn Community Group.

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In this July 2025 edition of the Microsoft Teams News Show, co-hosts Rob Scott and Kristian McCann of UC Today are joined by Tom Arbuthnot (Empowering.Cloud) and an expert panel featuring Kevin Kieller, Ryan Herbst, and Josh Blalock. Together, they unpack a transformative month for Microsoft Teams, from sweeping layoffs to rapid Copilot deployment and rising data sovereignty concerns.

Microsoft enters its new fiscal year with bold moves—cutting roles, re-aligning priorities, and pushing harder on AI. Tom Arbuthnot details the internal shakeups and how they're tied to the company's CoPilot-first vision. One of the biggest headlines? Barclays Bank's rollout of 100,000 M365 Copilot licenses—one of the largest deployments to date.

The panel also dissects the end of Teams Classic, enhanced tools for IT pros, and the strategic launch of real-time voice Copilot across platforms. Meanwhile, Europe's pushback on data sovereignty, including a German municipality’s exit from Teams, hints at larger geopolitical tensions in cloud tech. It's an unmissable update filled with practical takeaways and expert insights.

Discussion Highlights:

• Microsoft's FY25 kickoff: Layoffs, new roles, and renewed focus on AI and agentic capabilities
• Enterprise AI at scale: Barclays rolls out 100,000 Copilot licenses and what that means for adoption
• Teams Classic sunset, new IT health dashboards, and AI-powered Teams Room administration
• European data sovereignty challenges and Microsoft’s “M365 Local” and sovereign cloud responses

Next Steps:

For deeper dives into Copilot, agentic AI, and what’s next in FY25, don’t miss the Microsoft Partner Kickoff on July 22 and the Copilot Fireside Chat on July 31.

Thanks for watching, if you’d like more content like this, don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel.

You can also join in the conversation on our Twitter and LinkedIn pages.

Join our new LinkedIn Community Group.

Watch on YouTube.

In the June 2025 edition of the Microsoft Teams News Show, host Rob Scott from UC Today is joined by Tom Arbuthnot of Empowering.Cloud and a seasoned panel of experts for a fast-paced breakdown of what’s shaping the Microsoft Teams ecosystem. Fresh off his holiday and full of insights, Tom unpacks the biggest headlines from Microsoft Build, the newest Teams collaboration features, Copilot updates, Teams Phone innovations, and what to expect from key events like InfoComm, CCW Las Vegas, and Commsverse UK.

With AI deepening its roots across the Microsoft 365 landscape, this episode takes you inside the latest announcements — including multi-agent orchestration, threaded messages, live transcription, speaker recognition in Android rooms, and more.

Key Discussion Points:

Copilot Breakthroughs at Microsoft Build:

Tom and the panel unpack Copilot tuning, Model Context Protocol (MCP), and game-changing multi-agent orchestration that makes AI more adaptable and enterprise-ready than ever before.

Smart Collaboration Updates in Teams:

Threaded replies, streamlined file sharing with external users, and deeper AI integrations make team chat and channel work more intuitive and secure.

Copilot in Teams – Deep Dive:

Intelligent Recap now includes shared screen content, audio summaries, and real-time agents in meetings — taking productivity to new heights.

Teams Phone & Teams Rooms Innovations:

From transient transcription in sensitive calls to long-awaited call-waiting beeps and full speaker recognition for Android Rooms, the UC experience is expanding fast.

Next Steps:

• Tune in to InfoComm (June 7–13) and CCW (June 9–12)
• Don’t miss Commsverse (June 18–19)
• Apply for the UC Awards before June 20

Watch the full episode to hear more about the community sessions and fireside chats coming this month.

Thanks for watching, if you’d like more content like this, don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel.

You can also join in the conversation on our Twitter and LinkedIn pages.

Join our new LinkedIn Community Group.

Watch on YouTube.

In this UC Today exclusive, host David Dungay is joined by Microsoft experts Tom Arbuthnot, Kevin Kieller, Amanda Sterner, Ryan Herbst, Satish Upadhyaya, and Tom Halards for the highly anticipated Microsoft Teams Monthly Update.

With Microsoft’s staggering quarterly results and a raft of new Teams innovations, this conversation takes you behind the headlines into what’s really happening — from Copilot’s evolving AI personas to critical updates in Teams Rooms and Contact Center integrations. Whether you're a decision-maker, IT pro, or everyday Teams user, this episode is packed with can’t-miss insights on the future of collaboration and communication.

Microsoft Teams is evolving fast — and it’s not slowing down.

In this dynamic roundtable, the panel unpacks the biggest Teams stories and roadmap highlights you need to know:

• Microsoft's record-breaking financials and 430M+ M365 users: What’s driving growth and where is Teams in the mix?
• Contact Center evolution with Unify certification and licensing enforcement: Major changes for integrated voice solutions.
• Copilot 2.0 and the rise of AI Agents: From assistants to "Agent Bosses" — why training and adoption are now essential.
• Rooms and Devices upgrades: Face recognition, translated captions, local PTZ controls, and facilitator AI agents for Android.
• Roadmap gems: Sensitive content detection, silent test calls, remote diagnostics, and much more.

AI is rapidly transforming Teams into not just a collaboration tool, but a workplace operating system. This episode breaks down what’s hype, what’s here now, and what’s just around the corner — with expert takes on every announcement.

Connect with our hosts David Dungay and Tom Arbuthnot on socials here:

David Dungay

• LinkedIn
• Twitter

Tom Arbuthnot

• LinkedIn
• Twitter

Thanks for watching, if you’d like more content like this, don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel.

You can also join in the conversation on our Twitter and LinkedIn pages.

Join our new LinkedIn Community Group.

Watch on YouTube.

Join David Dungay and co-host Tom Arbuthnot as they welcome a power-packed panel of Microsoft Teams experts—Josh Blalock, Graham Walsh, Ryan Herbst, and Kevin Kieller—for April’s can't-miss Teams Monthly Update. From AI agents that think for you to game-changing integrations, this episode dives deep into the updates reshaping the Microsoft Teams ecosystem.

April’s edition of Microsoft Teams Monthly is a whirlwind of Copilot agents, smarter rooms, and surprise integrations. Whether you’re an IT pro, end user, or Teams nerd (no judgment here), you’ll want to catch every minute of this one.

Copilot Agent Upgrades

New “Researcher” and “Analyst” agents offer powerful multi-step reasoning for enterprise-grade insights.

Interpreter Agent enters public preview with real-time voice translation in multiple languages

Facilitator Agent helps meetings stay on track with nudges, time checks, and agenda prompts

Teams Phone + Dynamics

Microsoft debuts Teams Phone Extensibility for tighter contact center integrations

Major ISVs jump on board—lowering costs, boosting flexibility

Devices, Devices, Devices

Cisco brings Apple AirPlay to Teams Rooms

PTZ camera controls come to Android MTRs

Yealink, Jabra, and others push M-DEP devices into general availability

Shure gets Teams Room kits officially certified

Files Tab Gets Smarter

New “Shared” tab consolidates links, OneDrive, and SharePoint files—finally solving Teams file chaos

Plus: Event previews, live commentary, and a few laughs along the way.

Connect with our hosts David Dungay and Tom Arbuthnot on socials here:

David Dungay

• LinkedIn
• Twitter

Tom Arbuthnot

• LinkedIn
• Twitter

Thanks for watching, if you’d like more content like this, don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel.

You can also join in the conversation on our Twitter and LinkedIn pages.

Join our new LinkedIn Community Group.

Watch on YouTube.

Welcome to UC Today’s Microsoft Teams Monthly Update with David Dungay and Tom Arbuthnot! This month’s episode is packed with game-changing updates, and we’ve got an expert panel to dissect every major development. Joining David are:

• Tom Arbuthnot – Microsoft Teams & UC expert
• Josh Blalock – Industry thought leader
• Satish Upadhyaya – Microsoft specialist
• Ryan Herbst – UC strategist

What’s on the agenda?

• Skype is officially dead! What does this mean for enterprises?
• M-DEP finally goes GA with the first certified device—what’s next?
• Copilot’s AI-powered call summaries & Intelligent Recap—are they game-changers?
• Microsoft’s latest Teams admin and CarPlay updates—big wins for IT and mobile users.

Skype Bows Out – What’s Next?

After decades of influence, Microsoft is officially shutting down Skype. But is this a big deal or just a relic of the past?

M-DEP Hits the Market!

The first-ever M-DEP-certified device is here! The Jabra PanaCast 50 VBS leads the charge in Android-based Teams Rooms, with more devices coming soon.

AI Takes Over Teams Meetings

Copilot’s AI-powered call summaries and Intelligent Recap for webinars & town halls bring next-level automation to enterprise meetings.

New Tools for IT & Mobile Users

• Teams Client Health Dashboard for proactive troubleshooting.
• Direct Routing SIP Call Flow Diagrams now available in Teams Admin Center.
• Apple CarPlay & Siri Enhancements make it easier to stay connected on the go.

Plus: We break down what ChatGPT-4.5 means for Microsoft Copilot and the rise of AI competitors like DeepSeek!

Connect with our hosts David Dungay and Tom Arbuthnot on socials here:

David Dungay

• LinkedIn
• Twitter

Tom Arbuthnot

• LinkedIn
• Twitter

Thanks for watching, if you’d like more content like this, don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel.

You can also join in the conversation on our Twitter and LinkedIn pages.

Join our new LinkedIn Community Group.

Watch on YouTube.

In this packed episode of UC Today, David Dungay is joined by a powerhouse panel of Microsoft Teams experts:

• Tom Arbuthnot
• Amanda Sterner
• Satish Upadhyaya
• Kevin Keeler
• Ryan Herbst
• Josh Blaylock

Fresh from ISE 2024, the team dives into the latest Microsoft Teams innovations, including new hardware, Express Install setups, MultiCam capabilities, AI-powered super resolution, and the future of meeting room experiences.

If you want insider knowledge on the latest Microsoft Teams updates, this discussion is unmissable!

The Microsoft Teams ecosystem is evolving faster than ever, and ISE 2024 was packed with groundbreaking announcements. Our expert panel breaks down everything you need to know about Teams hardware, AI advancements, and smart meeting room solutions.

• ISE 2024 Highlights – The latest Jabra, Shure, Logitech, and MaxHub Teams-certified hardware for next-gen meeting spaces.
• BYOD vs. Native Teams Rooms – The ongoing debate: When does a business upgrade to a full Teams Room solution?
• MultiCam for Teams Rooms – Now generally available, enabling seamless multi-angle viewing in large rooms & classrooms.
• AI-Driven Super Resolution – How Microsoft is using AI to upscale low-quality video in poor network conditions.
• Microsoft Teams Panels & Room Occupancy – Real-time sensor data now prevents those “awkward walk-ins” during meetings.
• Microsoft-Android Partnership (M-DEP) – The latest OEM partnerships and what it means for Teams hardware innovation.

Microsoft Teams is redefining the way we work—from AI-powered enhancements to streamlined hybrid collaboration. If you're an IT leader, UC strategist, or Microsoft Teams power user, this episode is a goldmine of insights!

Connect with our hosts David Dungay and Tom Arbuthnot on socials here:

David Dungay

• LinkedIn
• Twitter

Tom Arbuthnot

• LinkedIn
• Twitter

Thanks for watching, if you’d like more content like this, don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel.

You can also join in the conversation on our Twitter and LinkedIn pages.

Join our new LinkedIn Community Group.