Starting Monday, Zoom users will have the option to open a documents tool from within their video calling app and create shareable files based on their meetings — but they’ll also be asked to use generative AI to help them write and edit them. This new feature, essentially Zoom’s version of documents, is the latest effort to compete with Microsoft and Google to become a one-stop workplace for businesses.
Documents present Zoom AI Companiona generative tool built on LLM models from OpenAI, Anthropic, Meta, and the company’s own models, introduced last fall. It can take a meeting transcript and organize it into templates, or create tables, checklists, and trackers to organize processes and tasks. Documents can then be integrated into Zoom meetings for sharing and editing.
“AI is what makes the experience so different,” says Smita Hashim, Zoom’s chief product officer. “The goal is that the mundane, high-friction tasks that take up so much of our time can be done by AI.”
Zoom Docs is the latest update to the company’s collaborative tool Workplace that came out in MarchIt’s an attempt to attract customers in a crowded market: Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 dominate the space and have already added their own AI features to their tools and laptops.
The market is “extremely difficult to compete in,” says Will McKeon-White, a senior analyst for infrastructure and operations at research firm Forrester, but not impossible: Google Docs has thrived in a world where Microsoft Word once reigned. Google Workspace has more than 3 billion userswhile Microsoft Teams It has more than 320 million monthly active users.
In this case, Zoom is betting that price will matter: its Workplace plans include the company’s AI Companion at no additional cost (Zoom Workplace costs Between $14 and $19 per user per month for smaller businesses. Microsoft Copilot for 365 The plugin costs $30 per user per month and Gemini For businesses, the Google plan costs between $20 and $30 per user per month, in addition to basic service costs.
Gemini can also help users brainstorm ideas in Google Docscreate images and summarize and refine texts. And Co-pilot You can work in Word, PowerPoint, and Excel to analyze information, rewrite information, and create presentations.
Convincing companies to switch workplace technology providers is a challenge, and Zoom may be banking on the fact that many organizations already use Zoom alongside another vendor, leaving them open to a switch. Zoom has been looking for the next big thing that could replicate its rapid growth during COVID-19 lockdowns, as people worked via Zoom or even attended weddings via Zoom. By early 2023, the company hit a tipping point: The number of customers willing to pay for Zoom had already done so, and fewer people were turning to it for “fun” Zoom calls with family or friends.
The company left the Nasdaq 100 at the end of 2023and its stock price is down nearly 90 percent from its 2020 peak. Zoom laid off about 15 percent of its staff in early 2023, but seemingly aware that it needed to expand, it began integrating more calendar features and added cartoon avatars. Zoom has also recently seen growth in its Contact Centera customer service channel for businesses. But to compete with bundled services like Google and Microsoft that also offer video calling, it needs to do more.
