Model Mondays S2E11: Exploring Speech AI in Azure AI Foundry
1. Weekly Highlights This week’s top news in the Azure AI ecosystem included: Lakuna — Copilot Studio Agent for Product Teams: A hackathon project built with Copilot Studio and Azure AI Foundry, Lakuna analyzes your requirements and docs to surface hidden assumptions, helping teams reflect, test, and reduce bias in product planning. Azure ND H200 v5 VMs for AI: Azure Machine Learning introduced ND H200 v5 VMs, featuring NVIDIA H200 GPUs (over 1TB GPU memory per VM!) for massive models, bigger context windows, and ultra-fast throughput. Agent Factory Blog Series: The next wave of agentic AI is about extensibility: plug your agents into hundreds of APIs and services using Model Connector Protocol (MCP) for portable, reusable tool integrations. GPT-5 Tool Calling on Azure AI Foundry: GPT-5 models now support free-form tool calling—no more rigid JSON! Output SQL, Python, configs, and more in your preferred format for natural, flexible workflows. Microsoft a Leader in 2025 Gartner Magic Quadrant: Azure was again named a leader for Cloud Native Application Platforms—validating its end-to-end runway for AI, microservices, DevOps, and more. 2. Spotlight On: Azure AI Foundry Speech Playground The main segment featured a live demo of the new Azure AI Speech Playground (now part of Foundry), showing how developers can experiment with and deploy cutting-edge voice, transcription, and avatar capabilities. Key Features & Demos: Speech Recognition (Speech-to-Text): Try real-time transcription directly in the playground—recognizing natural speech, pauses, accents, and domain terms. Batch and Fast transcription options for large files and blob storage. Custom Speech: Fine-tune models for your industry, vocabulary, and noise conditions. Text to Speech (TTS): Instantly convert text into natural, expressive audio in 150+ languages with 600+ neural voices. Demo: Listen to pre-built voices, explore whispering, cheerful, angry, and more styles. Custom Neural Voice: Clone and train your own professional or personal voice (with strict Responsible AI controls). Avatars & Video Translation: Bring your apps to life with prebuilt avatars and video translation, which syncs voice-overs to speakers in multilingual videos. Voice Live API: Voice Live API (Preview) integrates all premium speech capabilities with large language models, enabling real-time, proactive voice agents and chatbots. Demo: Language learning agent with voice, avatars, and proactive engagement. One-click code export for deployment in your IDE. 3. Customer Story: Hilo Health This week’s customer spotlight featured Helo Health—a healthcare technology company using Azure AI to boost efficiency for doctors, staff, and patients. How Hilo Uses Azure AI: Document Management: Automates fax/document filing, splits multi-page faxes by patient, reduces staff effort and errors using Azure Computer Vision and Document Intelligence. Ambient Listening: Ambient clinical note transcription captures doctor-patient conversations and summarizes them for easy EHR documentation. Genie AI Contact Center: Agentic voice assistants handle patient calls, book appointments, answer billing/refill questions, escalate to humans, and assist human agents—using Azure Communication Services, Azure Functions, FastAPI (community), and Azure OpenAI. Conversational Campaigns: Outbound reminders, procedure preps, and follow-ups all handled by voice AI—freeing up human staff. Impact: Hilo reaches 16,000+ physician practices and 180,000 providers, automates millions of communications, and processes $2B+ in payments annually—demonstrating how multimodal AI transforms patient journeys from first call to post-visit care. 4. Key Takeaways Here’s what you need to know from S2E11: Speech AI is Accessible: The Azure AI Foundry Speech Playground makes experimenting with voice recognition, TTS, and avatars easy for everyone. From Playground to Production: Fine-tune, export code, and deploy speech models in your own apps with Azure Speech Service. Responsible AI Built-In: Custom Neural Voice and avatars require application and approval, ensuring ethical, secure use. Agentic AI Everywhere: Voice Live API brings real-time, multimodal voice agents to any workflow. Healthcare Example: Hilo’s use of Azure AI shows the real-world impact of speech and agentic AI, from patient intake to after-visit care. Join the Community: Keep learning and building—join the Discord and Forum. Sharda's Tips: How I Wrote This Blog I organize key moments from each episode, highlight product demos and customer stories, and use GitHub Copilot for structure. For this recap, I tested the Speech Playground myself, explored the docs, and summarized answers to common developer questions on security, dialects, and deployment. Here’s my favorite Copilot prompt this week: "Generate a technical blog post for Model Mondays S2E11 based on the transcript and episode details. Focus on Azure Speech Playground, TTS, avatars, Voice Live API, and healthcare use cases. Add practical links for developers and students!" Coming Up Next Week Next week: Observability! Learn how to monitor, evaluate, and debug your AI models and workflows using Azure and OpenAI tools. Register For The Livestream – Sep 1, 2025 Register For The AMA – Sep 5, 2025 Ask Questions & View Recaps – Discussion Forum About Model Mondays Model Mondays is your weekly Azure AI learning series: 5-Minute Highlights: Latest AI news and product updates 15-Minute Spotlight: Demos and deep dives with product teams 30-Minute AMA Fridays: Ask anything in Discord or the forum Start building: Register For Livestreams Watch Past Replays Register For AMA Recap Past AMAs Join The Community Don’t build alone! The Azure AI Developer Community is here for real-time chats, events, and support: Join the Discord Explore the Forum About Me I'm Sharda, a Gold Microsoft Learn Student Ambassador focused on cloud and AI. Find me on GitHub, Dev.to, Tech Community, and LinkedIn. In this blog series, I share takeaways from each week’s Model Mondays livestream.
Embedded Excel sheet in Word Doc not showing all rows
I have a Word Doc with an embedded Excel sheet. After I add rows to the sheet, the Word Doc cuts off the new rows. I tried stretching it in the Word Doc, but that doesn't work, the Excel sheet just gets stretched. I've changed the print area and cleared the print area in the Excel file. I unhid all the rows as well. I've searched Google and here and I couldn't find an answer. Is the Word Doc or Excel sheet I'm working on corrupted? I've attached some screenshots.
Issue with "Edit with Paint 3D" Functionality
I have recently encountered an issue with Paint 3D. When I try to edit a picture using Paint 3D by right-clicking on the photo and selecting "Edit with Paint 3D," I am unexpectedly prompted to choose an app to open the file instead of Paint 3D launching directly. Has anyone else experienced this problem, or does anyone have any insights on why this might be happening and how to resolve it? Thank you for your assistance! Following was done: Reinstall Paint 3D Open Microsoft Store: Go to the Start menu and open the Microsoft Store. Search for Paint 3D: In the search bar, type "Paint 3D." Reinstall Paint 3D: If the app is installed, you can click "Open." If it’s not installed or you suspect it might be corrupted, click "Install" or "Get" to reinstall it. Ensure Paint 3D is Enabled Open Settings: Press Win + I to open Settings. Go to Apps: Navigate to "Apps" and then "Apps & features." Find Paint 3D: Scroll through the list of installed apps to find "Paint 3D." Ensure It’s Enabled: If you find it, make sure it’s not disabled. If it is, re-enable it. Associate Image Files with Paint 3D Manually Right-click on the Image File: Right-click on an image file. Select Properties: Choose "Properties" from the context menu. Change the Default Program: In the Properties window, click the "Change" button next to "Opens with." Manually Find Paint 3D: Click "More apps" if Paint 3D is not listed. Scroll down and click "Look for another app on this PC." Navigate to C:\Program Files\WindowsApps and look for the Paint 3D executable. Note that you may need administrative permissions to access this folder. Use the Default Apps Settings Open Settings: Press Win + I to open Settings. Go to Apps: Navigate to "Apps" and then "Default apps." Reset Default Apps: Scroll down and click "Reset" under "Reset to the Microsoft recommended defaults." Change Defaults Manually: After resetting, try setting Paint 3D as the default app for your image files again. Check for System Updates Open Settings: Press Win + I to open Settings. Go to Update & Security: Navigate to "Update & Security." Check for Updates: Click "Check for updates" and install any available updates. Sometimes updates can fix issues with system apps like Paint 3D. 1. Check if Paint 3D is Installed Correctly Open PowerShell as Administrator: Press Win + X and select "Windows PowerShell (Admin)." Check Installation: Enter the following command to check if Paint 3D is installed: powershell Copy code Get-AppxPackage *Microsoft.MSPaint* | Select Name, PackageFullName If Paint 3D is listed, it’s installed. If not, proceed to reinstall it. Reinstall Paint 3D: Uninstall Paint 3D using PowerShell: powershell Copy code Get-AppxPackage *Microsoft.MSPaint* | Remove-AppxPackage Reinstall from the Microsoft Store: Open the Microsoft Store, search for "Paint 3D," and install it. 2. Reset Paint 3D Open Settings: Press Win + I to open Settings. Go to Apps: Navigate to "Apps" > "Apps & features." Find Paint 3D: Scroll down and select "Paint 3D." Advanced Options: Click on "Advanced options." Reset: Click the "Reset" button. This will reset Paint 3D to its default state. 3. Create a New User Profile Open Settings: Press Win + I to open Settings. Go to Accounts: Navigate to "Accounts" > "Family & other users." Add Someone Else to This PC: Click on "Add someone else to this PC." Create a New User: Follow the prompts to create a new user account. Log In: Log out of your current account and log in with the new user account. Check if Paint 3D works correctly in the new profile. 4. Repair Windows Using DISM and SFC Open Command Prompt as Administrator: Press Win + X and select "Command Prompt (Admin)" or "Windows PowerShell (Admin)." Run DISM: Enter the following command to repair the Windows image: powershell Copy code DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth Wait for the process to complete. Run SFC: Enter the following command to check and repair system files: powershell Copy code sfc /scannow Wait for the process to complete and restart your computer.
Environment Variables And Password Issues
Dear Microsoft Support Team, Following our previous conversation, I understand my issues require escalated technical support. I'm detailing my concerns below for your specialized assistance. Issue 1: Disabled Environment Variable Controls I'm running Windows 11 Home and cannot modify system environment variables through the standard GUI. The "Edit" button remains disabled despite being the sole administrator account on this PC. This has created a critical problem with my Java and Tomcat PATH configurations. Currently, my system is detecting an outdated Java version, and Tomcat executables cannot be located - both due to incorrect PATH settings that I'm unable to modify. Issue 2: Authentication Method Constraints I need to transition from my current PIN authentication to a more secure password system. However, the "Password" option in Sign-in settings only permits changes to my existing account password, which is not my intent. The Windows Hello PIN section only allows modifying my existing PIN rather than replacing it with a robust password. This limitation presents significant security concerns for my system. These issues are hampering my development work and system security. I would appreciate your assistance in resolving these technical constraints. Thank you for your expertise and support.
Can't print from Outlook Classic when it's in Hebrew
When the client is in English, it prints. When switching back to Hebrew, an error occurs. A problem, was detected with the selected printer. You may need to reinstall the priner. Try again, or use a different printer. A Technician from Microsoft tried troubleshooting (reinstalling etc) and sent me here Thanks!Exploring the Future of Generative AI within Microsoft Technologies
Generative AI is rapidly transforming various sectors by enabling content creation, enhancing customer interaction, and promoting innovation. Microsoft is at the forefront of this change, integrating Generative AI features into its suite of tools and services. We will explore the latest advancements and consider how these technologies are shaping the future. Generative AI Operations (GenAIOps) Framework: Overview: Microsoft's GenAIOps framework tackles the challenges of managing, scaling, and securing generative AI applications in production settings. Customer Success: Firms like ASOS have leveraged Azure AI tools to optimize their GenAIOps workflows, markedly diminishing the time and resources needed for content creation. Challenges: Address the operational challenges such as model selection, data integrity, performance management, cost-effectiveness, and security. Building Scalable, Customized GenAI Solutions: Microservices Architecture: Delve into how microservices architecture can facilitate the development of scalable and tailored GenAI solutions. Use Cases: Present examples of essential use cases such as AI-driven support bots, content creation, and knowledge discovery. Customization for Precision: Emphasize the significance of refining AI models to meet specific business needs and enhance response quality. AI at Microsoft Build 2023: Event Highlights: Summarize the principal sessions and announcements from Microsoft Build 2023, with a focus on AI product launches and learning opportunities. Developer Empowerment: Explain how Azure OpenAI Service is making AI technology more accessible to businesses of all sizes. Skill Development with Azure AI: Learning Paths: Outline the quickest routes to become proficient in Azure's AI capabilities, including learning paths on the basics of generative AI. Community Engagement: Motivate community members to exchange their insights and strategies for mastering Azure AI tools.
Checking the connection to Microsoft. This might take a while.
I have WDS and MDT configured to deploy windows 10 to Lenovo ThinkPad 15 Gen2 along with network driver and all the things needed. Due to a minor misconfiguration right network drivers were not being injected. But when we are doing the same windows 10 installation through Bootable USB, we won't be including any drivers in that, but that still works. What I don't understand is the whole WDS deployment happens on the private network which doesn't need internet which I am being mandated for the process after MDT GUI has done its work the laptop restarts and saying "Checking the connection to Microsoft. This might take a while." as the landing page and getting stuck there for hours not letting me go any further. Please help me understand the part where it says it is trying to connect to Microsoft and getting stuck meaning it is trying to connect to internet when there is no need for that.Creating a ribbon for Avatar Reactions
Loving the Avatar feature! I'm noticing a lot of team members within our organization starting to use it. I think a visual but functional feature that could be considered is creating a second ribbon at the top, only when using the Avatar, that gives us a shortcut in using the reactions. Consider 5 or 10 reactions lined up across, small images that we can click on while attending a meeting! I feel that this will allow to have more space on the right hand side to be able to see participants or the chat.
