Microsoft Teams AI: How to Use Copilot in Meetings
A step-by-step guide to Teams Copilot for meetings, plus how MeetGeek adds recording, 100+ languages and follow-ups across platforms.

✅ Free meeting recording & transcription
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Microsoft Teams AI is the set of Copilot features built into Teams that transcribe your meetings, summarize the discussion, and answer questions about what was said, so you can focus on the conversation instead of typing notes. It runs during the call and produces a recap the moment it ends.
Picture joining a call five minutes late and, instead of interrupting to ask what you missed, opening Copilot and reading a summary of the decisions so far. That is what Teams AI does once it is switched on, and it takes only a few clicks.
This guide shows you how to turn Copilot on, use it during and after a meeting, and catch up when you are late. It also covers where Teams Copilot stops and where a dedicated AI note taker for Teams like MeetGeek takes over, so you can pick the right tool for each meeting.
What Is Microsoft Teams AI?
Microsoft Teams AI refers to Copilot, Microsoft's AI assistant built into Teams and Microsoft 365. In meetings, it listens to the transcript, writes AI-generated notes, tracks who said what, and answers questions about the discussion in real time. It needs a Microsoft 365 Copilot license or Teams Premium, and transcription has to be on for it to work.
Microsoft Teams Copilot Features for Meetings
- Real-time meeting summaries: Copilot gives live updates during the meeting, summarizing key points and highlighting where people agree or disagree, so you can stay in the conversation instead of taking notes.
- Intelligent recap: after the meeting ends, Copilot produces a recap with key topics, decisions, and tasks, so anyone who missed it can catch up in minutes.
- Call recap and highlights: for calls, it creates AI-powered summaries noting important discussions and action items, so you do not transcribe anything manually.
- Speaker attribution: Copilot tracks who said what, which makes it easy to follow a discussion and review a specific person's contributions.
- Voice isolation: in a noisy space, it filters out background noise so only your voice comes through clearly.
All of these depend on your organization's Microsoft licensing. If you do not see them, your IT admin controls what is available.
How to Set Up Copilot for a Teams Meeting
If you organize a meeting in Teams, you control how and when Copilot runs. Even without a Copilot license yourself, you can decide whether participants can use it, based on your organization's settings.
Before the meeting, you can choose when Copilot is available:
- During and after the meeting: Copilot stays active throughout and after the meeting, but transcription must be on for it to work. It starts as soon as the meeting begins transcribing.
- Only during the meeting: Copilot generates insights in real time using speech-to-text, but once the meeting ends the data disappears unless transcription was enabled.
- Off: Copilot is fully turned off, with no transcription, recording, or AI notes. This is best for private or sensitive meetings.
Once the meeting starts, you or any participant with access can turn Copilot on:
- Click the Copilot button in the meeting controls.
- If transcription is not already running, Teams will prompt you to start it.
- Once enabled, Copilot begins analyzing and summarizing the discussion.

NOTE: your control over Copilot depends on your organization's rules, Microsoft license, sensitivity labels, and meeting templates. If you do not see the option, check with your IT admin.
How to Turn On AI Notes in a Teams Meeting
AI-generated notes are Copilot's automated meeting notes. You can switch them on from the invite or during the call, and review them afterward. Here is each path.
How to Add AI Notes From the Meeting Invite
- Open Microsoft Teams and go to Calendar on the left.
- Click New Meeting to schedule a meeting.
- In the invite window, find the AI-generated notes toggle and switch it on to enable automatic transcription and notes.
- Click Save and send the invite as usual.
- AI-generated notes will now transcribe and summarize the meeting automatically.

NOTE: this works for scheduled meetings only, not channel meetings, instant meetings, or Teams calls.
How to Turn On AI Notes During a Meeting
- Open the meeting controls and click AI Notes in the meeting chat or at the top of the screen.
- Click the Copilot icon, then turn on the AI-generated notes toggle.
- Once enabled, the Notes icon changes to show that AI notes are active. It can take a few minutes for notes to appear as the AI processes the discussion.

NOTE #1: AI notes rely on the meeting transcript, so if transcription is off, note-taking pauses until it is back on.
NOTE #2: only Microsoft 365 Copilot users (organizers or presenters on desktop or web) can turn AI notes on or off, but all participants except external guests can view live updates.
NOTE #3: mobile participants can see live notes but cannot enable or disable them during the meeting.
How to Turn Off AI Notes During a Meeting
- Click the AI-generated notes icon in the meeting controls.
- Select the Copilot icon to open the settings.
- Turn off the AI-generated notes toggle. Copilot stops taking new notes, but anything already captured stays visible.
How to Review AI Notes After a Meeting
- Open Teams and go to Chat on the left.
- Find the meeting chat where AI notes were on.
- Click Recap at the top of the meeting chat, or select View Recap from the meeting thumbnail.
- Click the AI-generated notes icon to review the notes.

NOTE: AI notes are stored in a Microsoft Loop page, where any participant can edit them before, during, or after the meeting. For Microsoft's own steps, see its guide on how to automate notetaking in Teams meetings.
How to Catch Up When You Are Late to a Teams Meeting
- If you join more than 5 minutes late, Teams shows a notification offering a summary.
- Click Open Copilot, and a recap of the meeting so far appears on the right side of your screen, so you can see what was discussed without asking anyone.
- To review the summary while staying in the meeting, click Pop Out to open Copilot in a separate window.
- Before the meeting ends, Copilot gives you the main takeaways and next steps.
💡 PRO TIP: need more than a summary? Click the Copilot button in the meeting controls and try prompts such as:
- Recap the meeting so far
- List action items
- Highlight key discussion points
- Suggest follow-up questions
You can also ask your own questions, like:
1. Where do we disagree on this topic?
2. How did a specific participant respond to the proposal?
3. What can I ask to move the discussion forward?
How to Use Copilot After a Meeting
From the Meeting Chat
- Open Teams and go to the meeting chat where Copilot was used.
- Click the Copilot icon in the top-right corner.
- Ask questions like "What were the key takeaways?" or "What ideas were discussed?" Copilot pulls from both the chat and the meeting transcript.
NOTE: Copilot shows where it got the data, so you can tell whether it came from the chat or the spoken discussion. If no transcript was recorded, it uses chat messages only.
From the Recap Tab
- Open Teams and go to the meeting chat.
- Click the Recap tab at the top.
- Click the Copilot icon to see a summary of key points, action items, and insights.
- Ask questions like "What tasks were assigned?" or "Are there any unresolved topics?"
- If the meeting was transcribed, Copilot pulls from both chat messages and the transcript. Note that if a later meeting in a recurring series is transcribed, earlier Copilot history may no longer be available.
NOTE: Copilot's intelligent recap needs Teams Premium or Microsoft 365 Copilot, so access depends on your organization's setup. Microsoft explains the options in its guide on how to catch up on meetings with Copilot in Teams.
How to Wrap Up a Teams Meeting With Clear Next Steps
- A few minutes before the meeting ends, Copilot sends a prompt to help you wrap up.
- Click Open Copilot for a quick summary of what was discussed and any next steps, including tasks assigned to specific people.
- For more detail, ask Copilot "Are there any open questions?" or "What still needs to be decided?"
- Use the summary to confirm action items so everyone knows what to do before leaving.
Microsoft Teams Copilot vs MeetGeek: When to Use Which
Teams Copilot is strong at real-time help inside Microsoft 365. It summarizes as you go and answers questions during the call. Where it stops is outside the Microsoft world: it works only in Teams, needs a paid license, and keeps its recaps inside Microsoft's tools.
MeetGeek covers those gaps. It records automatically from your calendar even when you are not the host, works across Teams, Zoom, Google Meet, and in-person calls, and supports 100+ languages. Use the tool that matches the meeting: Copilot for a licensed internal Teams call, MeetGeek when you need recording, more languages, or coverage beyond Teams.
| What you need | Microsoft Teams Copilot | MeetGeek |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms it works on | Microsoft Teams only | Teams, Zoom, Google Meet, in-person |
| Recording | Manual; transcription must be on | Automatic from your calendar, even if you are not the host |
| Languages | Optimized mainly for English | 100+ languages |
| Free plan | No; needs Microsoft 365 Copilot or Teams Premium | Yes, free plan available |
| Post-meeting automation | Recaps inside Microsoft 365 | Summaries, follow-up emails, and 10,000+ app integrations |
| Internal vs external meetings | Built for internal Teams meetings | Internal and external meetings |
Table last updated: July 22, 2026. Microsoft 365 Copilot licensing was checked on Microsoft's pricing page and MeetGeek features on meetgeek.ai on that date.
If your team lives in Teams, the two work well together: Copilot handles the live meeting, and MeetGeek adds automatic recording, personalized follow-up emails, and a searchable knowledge base of every conversation. Connect MeetGeek's meeting assistant to the platform you already use, and it captures the meetings Copilot cannot.
💡 PRO TIP: for in-person meetings, the MeetGeek mobile app records and summarizes conversations without any bot. Open the app, hit record, and you get a reliable summary for interviews, coaching sessions, or conference talks, without taking a single note by hand.
If you want your Teams meetings documented automatically and shared across your stack, MeetGeek is free to try.
Try MeetGeek Free
Key Takeaways
- Microsoft Teams AI is Copilot: it transcribes meetings, writes AI notes, and produces a post-meeting recap.
- Copilot's meeting features need a Microsoft 365 Copilot license or Teams Premium, and transcription has to be on.
- You can turn on AI notes from the meeting invite or during the call, and review them later in the Recap tab.
- Copilot works only inside Teams and is optimized mainly for English.
- MeetGeek adds automatic recording, 100+ languages, cross-platform coverage, and follow-up automation, on a free plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Enable AI Notes in Teams?
If your organization has Microsoft 365 Copilot or Teams Premium, you can enable AI-generated notes from a meeting invite (turn on the AI-generated notes toggle) or during a meeting from the Copilot icon in the meeting controls. If you do not see the option, ask your IT admin whether Copilot is turned on for your account.
Does Microsoft Teams Have an AI Note Taker?
Yes. Teams includes an AI note taker through Copilot, which transcribes the meeting, writes AI-generated notes, and produces an intelligent recap with decisions and action items. It requires a paid Copilot or Teams Premium license. Standalone tools like MeetGeek add an AI note taker that also works on Zoom and Google Meet and offers a free plan.
Is Microsoft Teams AI Free?
No. Copilot's meeting features are a paid add-on. Microsoft 365 Copilot starts at $18 per user per month on an annual business plan (Microsoft, July 2026), and intelligent recap also requires Teams Premium. If you want AI meeting notes at no cost, MeetGeek offers a free plan that records and summarizes your Teams meetings.
Make Your Teams Meetings Smarter With AI
Microsoft Teams AI makes meetings more organized, helping you stay on track with summaries, action items, and real-time insights. Whether you use Copilot to catch up on a missed discussion or to automate note-taking, it saves time and keeps everyone aligned.
If you need more automation, more languages, and coverage beyond Teams, MeetGeek is a natural companion. It works across Teams, Zoom, Google Meet, and in-person conversations, giving you detailed summaries, searchable transcripts, and integrations with 10,000+ apps. Try it free and see the difference in your next meeting.
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