Microsoft is planning to roll out a new feature for Teams and Zoom that will allow you to substitute your live camera feed for a 3D avatar when on a video call.
The new feature is set to launch in May, according to Microsoft’s product road map. The 3D avatars will be available in many “customizable body types, skin tones, hair colors and hairstyles, clothes, and facial features, as per prior announcements from Mesh for Teams,” according to Ars Technica.
Mesh functions as an easy way to stay covert when you might not be in your most presentable state. Currently, the entire list of Mesh features remains unknown. however, there are some hints of Microsoft’s future plans for the feature circulating.
The brand initially announced the Mesh avatars in late 2021 when several companies were invested in the metaverse. The concept was intended not only as a method for showcasing 3D avatars in Teams, but also for users to interact in VR workspaces with other colleagues. Microsoft said at that time that the avatars were supposed to move only when users spoke, but the brand soon plans to have the avatars match the user’s real-time movement with their webcams.
Microsoft also intended Mesh to release in 2022, but the launch was delayed by the burgeoning interest in artificial intelligence (AI) across the industry. The brand made known its collaboration with the company OpenAI and had begun incorporating AI chatbot features into many of its products, including Bing Search and the Microsoft Office suite.
The Mesh project became less of a priority for Microsoft as interest in the metaverse dwindled and more workers returned to offices. The company also experienced a host of layoffs in its transition to AI, Ars Technica noted.
Other brands, such as Meta (formerly Facebook) stated in 2022 that the metaverse would take between five and 10 years to be fully realized. However, it has also since shifted away from that concept in favor of AI.
Nearly a month after announcing the GPT-6.1 Sol model, OpenAI unveiled GPT-6.1 Terra today. The latest addition to the family focuses on computer use, visual reasoning, coding, and professional work, while costing 50% less through the API than GPT-5.6 Terra.
OpenAI says Terra can handle everything from filling out browser forms and working inside spreadsheets to interpreting technical drawings and editing videos. The company says it can also complete computer-based tasks more than three times faster than GPT-6 Astra and GPT-6.1 Sol.
ASUS has started selling its UGen Intel Arc Pro B70 graphics card in Europe, bringing its take on Intel’s workstation GPU to customers with a hefty €1,799 recommended price. The card is available in Germany and Austria, while ASUS lists it at CHF 1,799 in Switzerland.
Intel first introduced the Arc Pro B70 in March 2026, with its own branded model starting at $949. ASUS’s version arrives several months later with the same core GPU architecture but a different cooling design and a higher power rating. The price also places it well above Intel’s original starting point, although the two prices are not directly comparable because ASUS’s European figure includes VAT.
Anthropic has officially filed to go public, and buried inside its S-1 is a blunt warning about the technology at the center of its business. The maker of Claude AI says advanced AI could cause everything from large-scale cyberattacks and geopolitical instability to catastrophic or even existential risks for humanity.
The warnings take up a surprisingly large part of the filing. Axios notes that more than 90 pages, or roughly a third of the prospectus, focus on risk factors. Many of them warn about what could happen as AI systems become more capable and autonomous.