Microsoft is introducing a major feature for PowerPoint and Skype. The company is launching live captioning and subtitles for both Skype and PowerPoint today.
On Skype, you will be able to enable live captions during calls. Skype will then automatically display captions in your call, and they will automatically scroll as people talk in your call. The app will let you scroll through all the captions on its own side window in the coming months.
On PowerPoint, the feature works similarly: as the presenter talks, you can display live captions underneath the slides. The feature apparently uses AI to automatically adapt to different content and context to improve the captions. Users will also be able to easily customize the size, position and appearance of the subtitles.
The new feature are supposed to improve inclusivity on both Skype and PowerPoint, so it will likely be a welcome addition for many. The feature will be available to Office 365 subscribers on PowerPoint in late January 2019, and it’s available on Skype today. Skype will also be getting support for translation of 20 languages in the coming weeks.
chump2010
<p>Just to ask a stupid question, but does this mean that Skype knows everything you say when you say something? I mean if they can transcribe your voice to captions, then surely that means they know everything you say. Not just what you type, but what you say too. Which is kind of scarey really.</p>
chump2010
<p>Thank you to all three for your answers. I knew about the email scanning that every provider did. I knew that the various personal assistants were obviously recording your voice etc. I did not realise that even in Skype, everything potentially is being parsed by an AI of some kind – even when it is voice. I assumed that perhaps they were reading my conversations for advertising purposes (though that is not made clear). It is just the idea that they also know everything that is said as well potentially recording all my voice interactions too, is a bit scarey. At least for me. Many thanks for your thoughts :)</p>