Remember Skype? Well, it still exists, and while apps like Google Meet and Microsoft Teams may steal the spotlight when it comes to communications, Microsoft is still working on Skype and hoping to make it more popular by removing in-app ads and adding (you guessed it) AI features.
In the recently published Skype Insider 8.125 release notes, Microsoft outlined the big changes in this new preview build. The biggest change, as mentioned, is that all ads have been removed, and Microsoft has proclaimed that “Skype is now ad-free.”
In short, Skype users will no longer see ads on Skype Channels or the rest of the Skype platform, which will greatly improve the user experience – or at least it should (although I haven’t used Skype for quite some time). However, please note that this is still in the testing phase, so there’s no guarantee that it will materialize.
In addition to removing ads, Microsoft has introduced an improved AI image creator into Skype’s desktop apps, allowing users to generate images directly in their chat window or from the top bar of the interface. Additionally, users can now enlarge these AI-generated images with just one click.
In addition to these larger changes, Microsoft has integrated OneAuth into Skype for iOS, giving users an option to make signing in easier. This allows users to replace traditional sign-in systems with OneAuth and automatically sign in to Skype if they are already signed in to another Microsoft app, which is quite handy.
The preview release also includes the usual bug fixes and improvements to app stability.
A new and improved Skype for the modern age
While I don’t know why Microsoft thinks everyone has suddenly developed a hunger for AI image generators in every corner of Windows 11 and its apps, I guess the changes on that front can’t hurt. When it comes to removing ads, though, we’re really talking now. It’s great to see Windows 11 losing some ads for a change, rather than having more of them crammed in, even if they’re ads in an app you don’t use much (or at all).
However, Skype has an active user base in the hundreds of millions and Microsoft appears to be interested in making it more popular by moving away from advertising.
If this development has piqued your interest and you want to see Skype ad-free, you'll need to download the latest Skype Insider build, or wait for all these features and changes to make their way to the release version of the app (which hopefully won't take too long).
