Zoom Transforms You Into A Cartoon Avatar To Make Meetings Less Somber
Ah, the bane of sitting through yet another Zoom meeting, and listening to your coworkers drone on for hours. Wouldn’t it be more fun if everyone dressed up in fancy outfits or appeared less hostile on screen?
That could soon become reality with the service’s latest addition: human avatars. Much like Apple’s Memojis, Zoom is bringing the ability to customize virtual characters that mirror your movements and facial expressions while on a call.
Instead of sitting idly and struggling to keep aware, you can choose to appear as a cuter, more upbeat cartoon iteration without having to actually show your face (and those eye bags) on camera.
As Engadget notes, this isn’t the first batch of avatars Zoom has released, as it previously came out with animal avatars last year. However, showing up to a formal meeting as a zebra may not go over as well, so human avatars could be the better choice.
The company says the avatars are a way to “project yourself dynamically” and provide a more engaging image for others to speak to rather than a static profile image. Plus, you can opt to switch to an avatar if you’re eating, or to liven up a meeting that’s putting everyone to sleep.
Beta testers with a paid account can currently access the feature globally, with the firm planning to expand the choices of facial features, hairstyles, and other customization options in the near future.
