Make Amazing Hybrid Work Happen with the New AI-Powered Cisco Webex

We have seen noise cancellation features in audio meetings before, but Webex audio intelligence goes beyond that. The deep learning technology can distinguish between human voice and other types of sounds. This functionality allows it to control both aspects independently. 

It can intelligently shut out background sounds when it’s noisy but let voices pass through when a collaborator is speaking. At the same time, it can tune up patchy voice quality when needed. 

There are four ways this helps in enabling an enriched audio experience:

• Cut out all the noise during meetings – the ‘noise removal’ feature fades out all kinds of noise, whether chatty neighbours in the office or the coffee machine at a cafe, from the Webex meeting.
• Improve music quality during events – if you want music at a virtual event to take centre stage, the ‘music mode’ can purposefully identify and improve the music quality.
• Enhance the voices for a group – best suited to boardroom conversations, Webex can let all human voices in a meeting sound clear, removing anything that’s still background noise.
• Let my voice stand out – this is for when a meeting speaker wants their voice to sound prominent to listeners without putting everyone else on mute.
  

These features ensure that audio quality is standard across environments and devices, letting workers achieve great collaboration from just about anywhere.
 

Webex has introduced AI-powered closed captions and real-time language translation, which improves accessibility for a diverse set of users. 

This feature allows you to see what is being said in a Webex meeting or webinar as text above the meeting controls. It can make meetings and webinars more accessible for people who are deaf, hard of hearing or speak a different language. 

Additional benefits of automated closed captions are:

• They are saved when the meeting or webinar is recorded, so you can review them later.
• They filter out offensive words, replacing some letters with asterisks.
• They can be translated into more than 100 languages, using real-time translation and transcription.
  
  

This innovative new offering allows you to have more inclusive and engaging meetings and webinars using Webex. The host can choose from 13 spoken languages for transcription, which can then be translated into more than 100 caption languages for the participants. 

The system automatically translates the speech into captions that appear above the meeting controls and the captions panel shows the selected spoken language. The feature also supports post-meeting transcripts in different formats and languages. Real-time translation and transcription are a paid add-on for Webex Meetings, Webex Webinars and meetings started from the Webex app.

Video intelligence is a superset of smaller features designed to improve the videoconferencing experience in nuanced setups such as boardrooms, crowded places or homes where privacy is paramount. 

This is achieved through a combination of camera intelligence and software capabilities inside Webex. Cisco’s camera intelligence can help create immersive and inclusive experiences for remote and in-office participants, using AI-driven camera technology and video over IP.

• Frames: Dynamically crop and frame participants to ensure everyone is equally represented in the meeting, regardless of the room size or layout.
• People focus: See the active speaker and meeting room participants in two separate video streams, creating a more natural and engaging interaction.
• Meeting zone: Define and frame the meeting space in open or glass-walled rooms, eliminating distractions and background noise.
• Speaker tracking and intelligent framing: Capture the active speaker and other in-room participants with adaptive and powerful cameras, even in large spaces.
• Presenter and audience: Keep the local presenter in frame as they move around on stage and allow co-presenting with a remote presenter for hybrid presentations and events.
• Training mode: Frame local attendees and track the presenter in training spaces and share rich content with remote participants for equitable learning experiences.
• Cross-view: Show the best view of people in the room from different angles, using multicamera technology and software-driven intelligence, to make everyone feel present in the discussion.
  

This feature allows presenters in a meeting to overlay their front camera video feed on top of their presentation. Meeting participants can now see the speaker clearly during the presentation. 

Immersive share humanizes the video meeting experience by keeping the presenter always visible. It could be especially helpful to healthcare professionals on telehealth calls or college teachers during lectures, allowing them to maintain eye contact with their audience at all times.

In hybrid work settings, fostering a culture of transparency and consistent communication could improve collaboration tremendously. 

Within Webex, collaboration insights is an analytics tool that provides detailed, private insights to individuals, teams and organizations to help combat common workforce fatigue while enabling personal wellbeing.

This feature helps users monitor their personal preferences and customize their interactions with colleagues, so they get the most out of their time at work. For example, you can see how much time you spend in meetings, how often you collaborate outside their preferred working hours and offers suggestions to balance work and personal life.

It also gives you a view of team collaboration patterns so you can build stronger and more inclusive work experiences for all team members. For example, users can see how well their team is aligned on goals, how equitable their team interactions are and how they can improve their team performance and cohesion. 

These insights go a long way in fostering inclusion. For instance, with the help of personal and team insights, you’ll be given data that can help amplify the voices of underrepresented groups and help the team avoid unconscious bias.

Soon you’ll be saying, “OK Webex.” 

Webex Assistant is a digital assistant, like Siri or Alexa, that uses AI and voice activation to automate common collaboration tasks. Webex Assistant has two main features: Webex Assistant for devices and Webex Assistant for meetings and events.

For organizations already using Cisco conferencing devices, the assistant introduces voice commands for tasks like starting and ending meetings, calling from the directory, booking a room and more. Webex Assistant for devices works with Cisco Webex Boards, Webex Desk Pro and Webex Room Series. It also supports Webex Assistant Skills, which are voice-driven applications that can be customized for the organization’s needs.

The same assistant can also be used for meeting automation. It helps you capture important items, such as action items, decisions and highlights, with one click or a voice command. 

The assistant can provide live transcripts and closed captions as well as post-meeting summaries and recordings. This feature enhances the meeting experience and productivity for both in-person and remote participants.

CDW and Cisco are on a mission to make amazing hybrid work happen by simplifying virtual collaboration. 

We are gold certified Cisco partners with deep expertise in Cisco products for delivering outstanding communications solutions. Our solution architects conduct detailed assessments of your current communications infrastructure and help design the right solution based on your workload, budget and business goals. 

With our trustworthy Cisco solution consulting, organizations can confidently harness the power of AI-powered Webex offerings at scale. From devices to meetings, we bring the best of Webex to your hybrid workers to help them achieve seamless collaboration.

AI-assisted collaboration offers solutions to many challenges faced by organizations that have embraced hybrid work. Innovations like high-quality media experiences and real-time translation can help you get used to the new normal of virtual collaboration. 

Cisco Webex offers several such AI features in its new product portfolio, making it more accessible for hybrid coworkers and professionals worldwide.