If you read XDA regularly, you probably know that Microsoft publishes a roundup of all the new features it added to Excel, Teams, and Copilot for Microsoft 365 at the end of each month. In addition to this, we sometimes also cover some smaller features that the company introduces to its Microsoft 365 apps and services during the course of the month. Now, the Redmond tech firm has detailed some exciting new capabilities that it has recently integrated in Teams and Excel.

What's new in Microsoft Teams?

In the past, when you created a new team in Teams, you may have noticed that a General channel gets created automatically. All team members have access to this by default, and it cannot be deleted or archived. However, based on user feedback, Microsoft is now allowing customers to rename this channel into something more meaningful. Team owners can click on More options > Rename channel > Channel name to retitle an existing General channel. A similar option will also be presented when creating a new team. That said, it is important to note that since General is a reserved string, no other channel can be assigned this name. This feature is now available for members of the Teams Public Preview or Microsoft 365 Targeted release ring on Windows and macOS.

Next, Microsoft has rolled out a nifty capability in Teams that allows a minimized meeting window to show up to four participants in the gallery rather than displaying a single tile. This option can be enabled from the Show participant gallery button in the view switcher, but you can also click on the Show only active presenter for a more focused view. This feature is also available only for members of the Teams Public Preview or Microsoft 365 Targeted release ring on Windows and macOS right now.

Great, but what about Microsoft Excel?

Excel users have not been left out in the cold either. Microsoft has rolled out regex modes for XLOOKUP and XMATCH functions. Customers can leverage this by setting [match_mode]=3 and a regex pattern for lookup. The Redmond firm has also recommended looking up regex patterns through Bing Copilot.

This capability is rolling out to Beta Channel customers on Windows (version 2408) and macOS (version 16.89). That said, Microsoft has cautioned that it is only in preview for now and may change drastically by the time it becomes generally available. As such, the company does not recommend using it in critical workbooks.