Microsoft is reportedly preparing a completely rebuilt version of Teams to launch at some point in March, according to a new report by The Verge. The goal is to deliver an app that's more resource-efficient than the current iteration available for business users on Windows 11 and Windows 10.

That idea may not sound completely new to you, and that's because it kind of isn't. This new version of Teams is largely based on the Teams integration that debuted in Windows 11 through the Chat feature. Chat with Microsoft Teams on Windows 11 is purely focused on consumers, however, so if you're using Teams for work, you're probably still using the old Electron-based app, which is much slower and uses more resources. Plus, if you're on Windows 10, the new app that debuted on Windows 11 still isn't available to you at all, regardless of whether you have a personal or business account.

Screenshot of Microsoft Teams integration in Windows 11

This new version of Teams replaces Electron with an interface based on Microsoft Edge's WebView2 control, and it also uses the React JavaScript library, removing the dependency on Apollo. Back when the Windows 11 integration was announced, Microsoft touted 50% less memory usage as one of the many improvements in the new version. While that version of Teams was plagued by various issues and limitations since its launch, a lot of them seem to have been addressed in the last few months, and it actually works almost flawlessly now, based on our experience. This should mean it's now a reliable enough experience for business users, too.

According to the report, this new version of Teams is being referred to as Teams 2.0 or Teams 2.1, and it's already being widely tested internally inside Microsoft. The plan is to make the app available in public preview in late March, and there will be an option to switch back to the old version if you run into any problems. Wider availability should come sometime after that.

Source: The Verge