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Information Technology Services has shared a letter with SOM leadership, offering further clarification on the functionality of Zoom’s AI Companion.

The letter was sent out by on March 3, 2025

Dear SOM Community,
On Wednesday, February 26, the AI Companion in Zoom was enabled by the university and it caused some confusion. While it is set as enabled, it isn’t automatically turned on for the meetings in which it appears. We apologize for this confusion.
Information Technology Services provided SOM leadership with further clarification of when Zoom’s AI Companion functions:
When (people) log in to Zoom, it says that Zoom AI Companion is “enabled” and there’s an icon that people can select before starting a meeting, or in a meeting. The confusing part is that “enabled” DOES NOT mean it is “on” or “running” nor that it “automatically starts”. It is enabled in the sense that it is available for use—not that it is “on” and running. Turning it on requires an affirmative act/choice by a meeting host, or in the setup of the meeting. It isn’t “on” by default. It is simply “available” by default.
J. Michael Barker, Ph.D.
Vice Chancellor for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer, -CH
SOM-IT will continue to work with the university to ensure that the Zoom application meets the needs and expectations of our community.
To learn more about settings and recommended best practices, visit the  on help.unc.edu.
If you have questions or need help using AI Companion, submit a  on help.unc.edu or call the IT Service Desk at 919-962-HELP (4357).
Thank you,
Thank You,
Jill Jemison, MBA
Associate Dean for IT and CIO
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | School of Medicine IT
o 919.966.9900 | | jill_jemison@med.unc.edu