Live Translated Captions for Microsoft Teams Meetings
Microsoft Teams meetings bring teams together across geographies and languages, but caption gaps leave non-native speakers and deaf participants at a disadvantage. Seagull adds real-time translated captions as a floating overlay, capturing system audio from your Teams window without plugins or setup.
What Makes Effective Live Captions for Teams
Live captions in team meetings need to balance accuracy with speed. When latency exceeds a few seconds, captions feel disconnected from the speaker's words, reducing their value for accessibility and comprehension. The overlay must stay visible without blocking video feeds or chat, and it should work across any meeting platform without requiring special integrations or host permissions.
Multilingual support is essential for global teams. If your attendees speak 10 different languages, captions that translate in real-time to each participant's preferred language eliminate the friction of note-taking or playback review. The best caption tools support dozens of languages and let viewers switch languages on the fly without restarting the meeting.
How Seagull Delivers Real-Time Captions for Teams
Seagull captures audio directly from your Teams window and displays captions as a low-latency floating overlay that sits on top of your meeting video. No plugins, browser extensions, or host permissions required. Since Seagull runs on your desktop, it works with any Teams meeting, whether hosted on Teams web, Teams desktop, or embedded in Outlook, and respects your privacy by processing audio locally.
With support for 60+ languages, Seagull translates captions in real-time so each team member sees captions in their native language. The overlay stays in place as you move between speakers, resize windows, or switch between Teams and other apps. Low-latency processing means captions appear within a second or two of speech, keeping accessibility seamless and engagement high during live discussions.
Platform Compatibility and Edge Cases
Seagull runs on Mac, Windows, and Linux, so your entire team can access captions regardless of their operating system. For Teams meeting hosts concerned about whether Seagull conflicts with built-in Teams caption features, the answer is straightforward: Seagull works alongside Teams' native captions and adds translation and customization options that Teams does not yet offer natively.
If your Teams meetings include screen sharing, Seagull continues to capture audio from the shared screen and any speaker video feed. For hybrid meetings with both remote and in-room participants, Seagull captions the remote audio stream that Teams transmits to your computer. Some organizations use Seagull alongside accessibility tools like screen readers, and the floating caption overlay does not interfere with keyboard navigation or other assistive tech.
How to Get Started
Available for Mac, Windows, and Linux. The app installs in seconds and requires no configuration.
Choose the language being spoken and the language you want to see. Seagull supports 40+ languages out of the box.
Seagull will transcribe and translate audio from any app in real time. Captions appear in a small overlay on your screen.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need the Teams host to approve Seagull captions?
No. Seagull is a desktop app that captures audio from your computer only, so it does not require host permissions or modifications to your Teams settings. You install it on your device and activate captions whenever you join a Teams meeting.
Can I use Seagull captions if Teams has native captions turned on?
Yes. Seagull captions and Teams native captions can both be visible at the same time. Many users prefer Seagull's floating overlay layout and language options, but it is entirely your choice which caption source to rely on or combine.
What happens to captions if the Teams meeting uses screen sharing or slides?
Seagull continues to capture audio from the speaker and any video stream, so captions keep flowing even when slides or shared screens are visible. The floating overlay remains on top and does not block the shared content.
Available for Mac, Windows, and Linux. 1 hour free trial included.