MC1231437 High Major change

Update PowerPoint to maintain Captions

  • User
  • Admin

Summary AI-generated

PowerPoint live Captions & Subtitles will only be supported on Windows 16.0.19426.20218+ and macOS 16.103.1207.4+ starting September 2026; older clients lose access after this date.

Suggested actions AI-generated

  • Audit deployed PowerPoint client versions
  • Upgrade Office clients to supported versions
  • Inform helpdesk and accessibility contacts

Written by Azure OpenAI (gpt-4.1) from the text of the post below. It can be incomplete or wrong; the original post is authoritative.

Original post from Microsoft

[Introduction]

To maintain a high-quality and reliable experience for live Captions & Subtitles in the Microsoft 365 PowerPoint app, Microsoft is upgrading the backend service that supports this capability. As part of this improvement, older Office client versions will no longer be supported. Updating to the minimum required PowerPoint version ensures continued accessibility, performance, and reliability.

[When this will happen:]

Upgrade by the end of September 2026

[How this affects your organization:]

Who is affected:

  • Organizations using Microsoft 365 PowerPoint app (Win32 or Mac)
  • Users running PowerPoint versions earlier than:
    • Windows (Win32): 16.0.19426.20218
    • macOS: 16.103.1207.4

[What will happen:]

  • Users on unsupported versions will lose access to Captions & Subtitles after the listed dates.
  • There is no change for users on supported versions.
  • No changes to default settings or admin configuration are required.

[What you can do to prepare:]

  • Review PowerPoint client versions across your organization (Windows and Mac).
  • Update Office clients to:
    • Windows (Win32): 16.0.19426.20218 or later
    • macOS: 16.103.1207.4 or later
  • Plan upgrades ahead of September 2026, especially for environments on managed or restricted update cadences.
  • Notify helpdesk and accessibility stakeholders.

[Compliance considerations:]

No compliance considerations identified, review as appropriate for your organization.

Additional details from Microsoft

Summary
Microsoft will upgrade the backend service for Captions & Subtitles in PowerPoint by September 2026. Users with versions older than 16.0.19426.20218 (Windows) or 16.103.1207.4 (macOS) will lose access. Organizations should update PowerPoint to maintain this feature without changing settings.