Zoom has announced a range of new AI capabilities designed to reduce manual work and improve cross-platform productivity.
The latest updates include broader app integrations, enhanced meeting tools, and a new paid add-on for small and mid-sized businesses looking to extend Zoom’s AI Companion beyond the platform itself.
At the core of the update is its agentic AI functionality, which allows Zoom AI Companion to not just summarise or transcribe meetings, but actively complete tasks across third-party platforms such as Salesforce, Jira, Asana, ServiceNow, and Slack.
“With Zoom AI Companion’s agentic skills, users will see a significant productivity boost to help them get more done,” said Smita Hashim, Chief Product Officer at Zoom.
The Custom AI Companion add-on empowers users to streamline their workflows by having AI Companion join their Zoom Meetings and in-person meetings and can now access AI Companion across other video conferencing platforms.”
Key Features and Updates
Zoom AI Companion now connects with 16 third-party platforms, supporting use cases such as:
- CRM and Support: Update customer records or service tickets in Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Zendesk.
- Project Management: Assign tasks and adjust deadlines in Jira and Asana without leaving Zoom.
- File Collaboration: Retrieve or summarize documents from OneDrive, Google Drive, Confluence, Notion, and Box.
- Chat Integration: Summarize Slack messages or post follow-ups automatically.
- HR Tools: Query job postings and candidate details via Workday.
Zoom says these integrations will enable users to perform cross-platform actions directly from meetings or chats, reducing dependency on manual updates and repetitive workflows.
Custom AI Companion Add-on
A new Custom AI Companion add-on ($12/user/month) extends AI Companion’s reach beyond Zoom, enabling support for Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, and soon, Cisco Webex.
It offers customisable meeting summaries with 11 templates, voice transcription for in-person meetings, and the ability to generate avatar-based video clips using Zoom Clips.
Designed for small business owners and consultants juggling multiple platforms, the add-on also enhances cross-platform search and task orchestration.
Enhancements for Existing Users
Paid Zoom Workplace licenses now include several new AI Companion features at no additional cost:
- AI support during Zoom Phone calls: Users can ask questions in real time or get summaries of conversations.
- Meeting agenda generation: Create structured agendas using past meetings or Zoom Docs.
- Document summarization in Zoom Team Chat.
- Meeting asset access: Transcripts, summaries, and recordings are now available directly via calendar events.
Later this month, the platform will introduce meeting asset sharing via Zoom Calendar, allowing hosts and participants to share or request access to summaries and recordings post-meeting.
Admin and Developer Tools
For IT admins and developers, AI Studio now supports:
- Indexing of content from Google Drive, OneDrive, and public URLs.
- More granular control over knowledge sources while respecting permission settings.
- Publishing and change tracking in Zoom Docs, including the ability to turn docs into public webpages.
Potential Limitations
While Zoom’s AI pivot offers increased automation – they also raise familiar concerns around data privacy, accuracy, and platform dependency.
The effectiveness of agentic workflows will largely depend on how well permissions are managed across integrated systems, particularly for organisations handling sensitive customer or employee data.
Additionally, real-world usage may surface limitations in AI-generated summaries or task execution, especially in complex or nuanced conversations.
Smaller teams may also find the $12/month add-on pricing difficult to justify unless cross-platform support is absolutely essential.
The Bottom Line for IT Leaders
Zoom’s latest updates build on its March 2024 Workplace launch, a move designed to stay competitive against Microsoft Teams and Google Workspace.
Earlier this month the company introduced Realtime Media Streams (RTMS), a new capability that enables organisations and developers to access live audio, video, and transcript data from Zoom Meetings in real time.
Delivered over WebSocket, RTMS is positioned to help IT leaders accelerate the adoption of AI-enabled tools, streamline workflows, and integrate rich communications data into core enterprise platforms.
Zoom’s evolution signals a broader industry shift toward agentic AI – systems that not only assist but take action on behalf of the user.
By expanding support to multiple platforms and automating routine tasks, the company is positioning AI Companion as a more flexible and interoperable productivity tool.
While some features are gated behind a paid add-on, the continued development of built-in capabilities suggests Zoom is committed to AI-driven collaboration as a core part of its workplace platform.
