During last year’s Ignite, Microsoft first announced Microsoft Loop, a new app that combines a powerful and flexible canvas with portable components that stay in sync and move freely across Microsoft 365 apps. Today, at Ignite 2022, Microsoft announced that Loop app is now in private preview.
Microsoft will be working with customers in private preview to incorporate their feedback as it continues developing the app.
Microsoft also announced that it is expanding the availability of Loop components to more places across Microsoft 365 and is bringing more component types. Find the details below.
- Inserting a poll, checklist or task list component into a Word for the web document under the Insert menu or with Editor using Context IQ. Users will simply type the “@” sign and based on the context of what is typed, Editor leveraging Context IQ surfaces the most relevant content – such as inserting a poll, checklist or task list component type. This update will be in private preview by the end of the year.
- Copying an existing Loop component and pasting it into Whiteboard in Teams, web and desktop. Like all Loop components, changes made to a Loop component in Whiteboard will sync across all the places the component lives. This update will be generally available by the end of the year.
- The Polls component type powered by Microsoft Forms will enable users to create surveys, quizzes and word clouds that stay in sync across Outlook on the web and Word for the web. This update will be in private preview by the end of the year.
- Q&A, a new Loop component type that will enable users to collect answers to questions in real-time. Q&A is preview in Outlook on the web and will be generally available in November.
New security for Loop components will include:
- Sensitivity labels that will enable users to assign a level of security for their Loop components to help ensure that sensitive information isn’t mishandled. For instance, when a Loop component is created, people can change the label from “General” to “Confidential” to encrypt the component, restrict who has access or raise awareness of sensitive data being handled. Admins also have the option to include a watermark on different labels making the security level even clearer.
- Data Loss Prevention (DLP) for Loop components is like DLP in apps, such as Word, Excel and PowerPoint, where admins will be able to set content and keywords to automatically trigger a banner on Loop components. These banners raise awareness about potentially sensitive data in a component.
Both sensitivity labels and Data Loss Prevention for Loop components will be generally available in Teams chat by the end of the year.
