Use Copilot without transcribing or recording a Teams meeting or call

Teams meetings

If you're organizing a confidential meeting discussing sensitive information and prefer not to record or transcribe, you can still use Copilot to help with notetaking and task management.

Before a scheduled meeting:

1. Select Calendar  in Teams.

2. Select a meeting you organized.

3. Select Options  .

4. Scroll down to Copilot and other AI  and make sure Only during the meeting is selected from the dropdown menu.

   Note: If you don't see this option, contact your IT admin.

3.  Select Apply.

During a meeting, select Copilot   in your meeting controls. Then, select Turn on from the notification to open the Copilot  pane.

Copilot can generate notes, list tasks, and much more during the live meeting. And remember, other people in the meeting can’t see your conversation with Copilot.

After the meeting, Copilot won’t be available in the meeting’s Recap tab unless transcription or recording was turned on during the meeting. Then, Copilot and the content of your conversation with Copilot will continue to be available, starting from the moment the transcript or recording was turned on. 

Learn more about Copilot in Teams Meetings.

Teams Calls

Copilot-only mode for calls is a setting that is enabled by your IT admin. After initiating the call, select Copilot   in your call controls. Then, choose Turn on from the notification to open the Copilot  pane.

After the call, Copilot won’t be available in the associated chat thread for VoIP calls or the Calls app call history. However, if someone turns on transcription or recording during the call, your conversation with Copilot will be available afterward.

Learn more about Copilot in Teams Phone.

FAQs

If Copilot is set to "Only during the meeting" or "Only during the call", does Copilot start as soon as the meeting or call starts?

No. Participants must select Copilot   in the meeting or call controls to start Copilot.

Once Copilot starts, can I turn it off?

Once Copilot starts, it will be on for the duration of the meeting or call.

If Copilot is set to "Only during the meeting" or "Only during the call", can I still use Copilot if the transcription or recording gets turned on?

Yes, Copilot will still work. If transcription is turned on, interactions with Copilot during and after the meeting or call will contain information from the speech-to-text data and the transcript.

After the meeting or call ends, only information from the point that the transcript was turned on will be accessible.

If someone joins the meeting or call late, can they use Copilot to access information from earlier in the conversation? 

Yes, late-joining participants will be able to access any content from the moment Copilot was initiated by a another participant in the meeting or call.

By policy, I'm not allowed to start a transcript or recording. Can I still use Copilot only during the meeting or call?

Yes. Transcription isn't required to use Copilot during a meeting or call. You'll still be able to see Copilot's conversation history after the meeting or call ends. However, all Copilot interactions will be available through Purview based on your org's retention policy.

How can Copilot work only during the meeting or call? 

Copilot uses meeting audio and contextual signals to generate responses during the meeting. While meeting transcripts are not created when transcription is turned off, Copilot prompts and responses may be retained in accordance with your org’s Microsoft Purview retention policies.

Is there an audit log of prompts and responses?

Copilot prompts and responses may be retained in the Microsoft 365 compliance substrate and are subject to your org’s Microsoft Purview retention policies.

What are the plans for eDiscovery?

Copilot prompts and responses may be discoverable through Microsoft Purview eDiscovery, depending on your organization’s retention policy configuration.

Why is the meeting option for how to use Copilot visible to all members of an organization, whether they are licensed or unlicensed?

This ensures meeting organizers can set how Copilot will be used in their meetings, even if they themselves don't have a license.

Can external participants access Copilot only during the meeting or call?

No. If a licensed external participant joins a meeting or call with this option enabled, they won't be able to interact with Copilot. Copilot can't access external transcripts or speech-to-text data. This applies to channel meetings and internal meetings and calls. 

Can people in a multi-tenant organization (MTO) access Copilot only during the meeting or call when in meetings or calls hosted by a different organization in the MTO?

No. MTO users are treated as external users for this scenario.

If my org disables transcription for all company meetings or calls, and someone with Microsoft 365 Copilot enables Copilot only during the meeting or call, will that person be able to use Copilot during the meeting or call?

Yes. If transcription is turned off for the meeting or call and someone enables Copilot only during the meeting or call, people with Copilot licenses can use Copilot during the meeting or call. 

However, one exception for calls is if the admin selects a setting that Copilot requires persistent transcription to work and then limits the user from using transcription. Copilot will not work during calls under this scenario. 

Why does Copilot ask me what language everyone is speaking? What does this do?

Selecting the language that everyone is speaking helps ensure that audio processing happens in the right language. The speech-to-text data and any citations will be generated in the spoken language you select. However, you can ask Copilot a question in any language, and it will respond in that language. 

How do I change the spoken language after Copilot starts?

The spoken language can be changed through the live captions settings. To learn more, see Use live captions in Microsoft Teams meetings.

Related topics

Get started with Copilot in Microsoft Teams meetings

Get started with Copilot in Microsoft Teams Phone​​​​​​​

Welcome to Copilot in Microsoft Teams

Frequently asked questions about Copilot in Microsoft Teams