Microsoft’s decision to retire Teams’ Together Mode is a classic case of tech overkill trying to solve a problem that never really existed—namely, the existential crisis of virtual meeting attendees feeling disconnected from one another in 2023.

The feature was conceived during the pandemic when Zoom fatigue reigned supreme, and seeing avatars floating on desks seemed revolutionary. Yet, AI-powered headshots and shoulders placed in a virtual boardroom often felt more like a tech demo than an essential collaboration tool. Imagine raising your hand to speak only for your AI avatar to awkwardly raise its head, making you look like a digital bobblehead.

Critics argue that Together Mode limited visual distractions but also reduced the human touch—those spontaneous glances, impromptu high fives, and the occasional “I’m naked under my shirt” moment. The feature’s AI could place you in a virtual space, but it couldn’t capture the nuanced facial expressions or the charm of a colleague with a coffee stain on their shirt.

Moreover, as meetings became more routine post-pandemic, users adapted to standard video layouts—sometimes even preferring grid views for consistency and simplicity over immersive virtual environments. The gradual rollout of Together Mode’s retirement suggests that while it was innovative, it wasn’t essential enough to survive the next wave of Teams upgrades.

So, in a nutshell: Microsoft killed Teams’ Together Mode because AI avatars were cute but not necessary—especially when real people could just sit at their desks with pants on and talk. The Verge captured this perfectly, leaving us to wonder if our digital selves will ever truly match our human quirks—or if we’ll settle for pixelated perfection.