Using Zoom AI Companion

This user guide helps you to use the Zoom AI Companion features effectively in your meetings.

Basics

Below you will find all the activated features available to you in Zoom at the University of Vienna. You can activate the individual features in the Zoom web portal. To do so, open the Settings and select the AI Companion tab.

When you activate the AI Companion in your meeting, a star icon will appear in the top right corner of the meeting window and participants will be notified with a note.

Notes

The AI Companion only uses data that is available in the respective meeting context – such as the meeting transcript, the webinar chat or shared content. Other Zoom services such as team chat, mail, calendar or documents are deactivated at the University of Vienna.

Zoomdoes not use communication data (audio, video, chat, files, etc.) for the training of AI models from Zoom or third-party providers.

All content generated by the AI should be understood as suggestions. Please always check these for technical accuracy before using them.

Asking questions during meetings and webinars

During a meeting or webinar, hosts and participants can ask the AI Companion questions such as

‘What topics are currently being discussed?’
‘Was my name mentioned?’
‘What are the next steps after the meeting?’

The answers are based on the automatically generated meeting transcript and are therefore closely related to the course of the conversation.

Click on AI Companion (icon with 2 stars) in the control bar at the bottom or click onMore and then on AI Companion to activate the AI assistant.
The AI Companion window opens on the right side of the screen.
Click in the input field and ask questions about the content of the meeting to have them answered by the AI assistant.
Click on the Stop AI Companion button at the top when you no longer need it.

Receiving automatic summaries

If you enable the Meeting summary with AI Companion option in the settings, the AI Companion will generate an automatic summary at the end of a meeting or webinar. The AI assistant summarises the key messages and most important discussion points, helping you with follow-up work.

The summary is automatically sent by e-mail to the host of the meeting. You can then edit the summary and share it with others.

To access the automatic summaries in the Zoom web portal:

Select Recordings & Transcripts from the menu on the left.
Click on the desired recording to access it.
Click on View highlights below the video thumbnail and then open the Summary and smart chapters tab.

Note

Saved content (summaries, transcripts, chapter overviews) is automatically deleted after 365 days.

Using smart recording

When you record a meeting to the cloud, advanced AI features are available to you. In addition to the recording, AI Companion automatically creates:

Highlights of the most important parts
A chapter overview (smart chapters) for easier navigation
A short summary
A list of possible next steps that the AI has identified in the conversation

To access the smart recordings in the Zoom web portal:

Select Recordings & Transcripts from the menu on the left.
Access the desired recording by clicking on it.
Under the video thumbnail, click View highlights to display the smart recording options.

Note

Saved content (summaries, transcripts, chapter overviews) is automatically deleted after 365 days.

Generating whiteboard content

When working with Zoom whiteboards, AI Companion can assist you with:

generating ideas,
structuring texts
or adapting wording.

This allows you to make brainstorming and collaborative work processes more efficient.

Create a new whiteboard during a meeting.
Click on the icon with 2 stars (AI Companion) in the toolbar on the left.
A new window will open. You can then have the AI create mind maps, diagrams and tables, for example.