TrueConf 8.5 for desktop OS: new UI, AI, and advanced messenger
Maria Mihalyova
August 14, 2025
Meet TrueConf 8.5, the latest update of our client apps for Windows, macOS, Debian, Ubuntu, and other Linux distributions.
We also held a webinar where we talked about the TrueConf 8.5 update.
New AI: video as a virtual background
In addition to background blurring, replacing, and speech over the content, a new AI feature has been introduced: now you can use MP4. video files as a background. This will enhance engagement in any conference, such as a meeting, webinar, or online presentation.
To upload your video background, go to the Video settings and add the file using the 
icon, or replace the already uploaded background image
New AI: document or whiteboard recognition
We have introduced a tool for displaying the content from a flipchart or documents using a document camera. The built-in AI adjusts the image from your camera if the whiteboard or document is positioned at an angle, and also removes foreign objects from the frame.
How to enable?
-
Click the
icon in the Settings — Video section
- Right-click on your own video window and select “Document or whiteboard recognition” during a call or conference.
Pointer
Simplify the perception: when sharing the screen, you can now enable the Pointer, which will follow the cursor and thereby focus on the user’s actions.
How to enable? While you’re sharing the screen, in the widget, click
(Screen annotation), and then click
(Pointer) in the side menu
New UI
Enhance your meeting visuals
We have given video conferences a new, more harmonious look. Participant windows now feature rounded corners, creating a modern and visually appealing interface.
In addition, a dedicated quick reactions button has appeared on the lower control panel.
Pop-up windows and notifications
We have also improved the appearance of notifications and pop-ups — now they fully correspond to the updated application design.
Conferences section
We have significantly redesigned the Conferences section. The homepage is now organized into three distinct sections:
- creating an ad-hoc conference
- connecting to the meeting
- scheduler.
You can now start an instant conference in one click by clicking the “Start now” button. After launching, you can also quickly invite the participants from the address book.
By clicking the 
icon, you can change the ad-hoc conference settings before its start or set the default settings.
We have also created a separate button which will enable you to immediately go to the conference scheduling.
Upcoming meetings page
We have added a special page with events scheduled for the selected day to the Conferences section. Unlike the usual calendar, it uses a card format with key information about each meeting.
By default, the current day’s appointments are displayed on the upcoming meetings page, but you can select any date if necessary.
Improved user profile and updated group chat profile
In TrueConf 8.5, user and group chat profiles aren’t just visually refreshed. Now the call history, the list of files sent and received in the chat, as well as the list of group chat participants are organized into tabs for easier access.
Authorization screen
In TrueConf 8.5, the authorization became more intuitive:
- the automatic connection to TrueConf Online cloud service was removed
- in the application window, you can either sign in or quickly connect to the conference via a link.
To sign in to your company’s TrueConf Server, it is now enough to enter your corporate email.
Advanced messenger
Chat pinning, folders, channels, and archive
TrueConf Server 5.5 now introduces capabilities to pin selected chats, sort them into folders and archive them, launch corporate channels, as well as mark chats as read/unread.
These features are now fully available in desktop applications starting from TrueConf 8.5.
Folders
Channels
Chat pinning
Mark as read
Archive
Spell check
You can now instantly check yourself using our built-in spelling tool: questionable words will be highlighted in red.
Spell check is enabled by default and works for English.
How to disable? Go to the application Settings — Tools — Spell check..
Text links
In TrueConf desktop apps, you can format a message by placing the necessary accents by highlighting the text in bold, choosing italics, underlined or strikethrough writing.
In TrueConf 8.5, we’ve added the capability to embed hyperlinks in the text, which will make your messages more concise and accurate.
Enhanced @mentions
Now, a user who has been mentioned through @username or @trueconf_id will see the corresponding @ sign even if they have disabled notifications for this group chat.
And using the @all command, you can now address all participants in a group chat.
Picture-in-picture for videos
Videos played in the desktop app’s player can now be minimized into a neat widget.
How to enable? Click the
button on the playback panel when viewing the conference recording (Recordings section) or a video file in the chat.
Grouping images
Compressed images sent in a single message are now grouped and sent in a single bundle with an optional text comment.
Unified emoji standard
On Windows and Linux, emojis are now displayed in a single style using the Noto Sans library. Earlier, the native font library of your OS was used to display emojis.
In addition, when sending or receiving up to three emojis in a single chat message without any text, they will be displayed in a large format.
Viewing OpenDocument files
You can now open documents in ODP, ODT, ODG, and ODS directly in the chat of the desktop application on Windows and Linux without running third-party software.
To access this feature, the ODP editor (Libreoffice) should be installed in the system. In some cases, you will need to specify the path to it in the Settings — Tools section.
AV1 codec support for video calls
In the new version, we have supported the AV1 codec for point-to-point calls, which allows you to achieve high video quality with low bitrate and low Internet connection speed.
How to enable? The AV1 codec turns on automatically in a point-to-point call between two TrueConf 8.5 users
Setting your own notification sounds
You can now upload any audio files and set them as sounds for incoming calls and other notifications. MP3, WAV, or M4A files with a maximum size of 5 MB are supported.
Where to enable? In the Settings — Notifications and sounds section, select the sound you want to customize, and click the Upload sound button in the drop-down menu.
Other changes and improvements
- The Surveys section has been added to the menu (available when connected to TrueConf Server 5.5+)
- The output bitrate can now be changed directly during a call or conference in the Settings — Limits section.
- If the connection is lost, you can now manually reconnect to TrueConf Server — the corresponding button will appear in a pop-up notification
- After ending a call or conference, a pop-up window now displays calls missed during your conversation
- We’ve added the ability to manually select a noise suppression model in the Settings — Audio section
- Links in the /c/conference_id format are recognized automatically and converted into hyperlinks
- All links that start with http/https are automatically converted to hyperlinks
- After the conference end, participants now receive a notification indicating the reason for its termination
- Vertical orientation is supported for local conference recordings made using the desktop app
- The application for Windows supports the ability to capture a window with a full-screen presentation using Microsoft PowerPoint
- We’ve added Persian localization.
For a complete list of updates, check our changelog.
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