In the midst of the Corona Virus pandemic, with social distancing being a top priority, online conferencing platforms such as Zoom have risen in usage and popularity. This April, Zoom announced that they had 200 million users in March, a spike up from 10 million users in December. With the use of online platforms being the norm now, a phenomenon known as “Zoom fatigue” has surfaced, a worry or burnout associated with overusing these platforms. Many feel unincluded, disengaged and are prone to multi-tasking. Zoom+ proposes a more interactive experience with additional productivity and social communication tools.

This project uses Processing and P5.js to create shared background canvases for Zoom users. The Canvas features a drawing tool, a background color changer, and various camera filters, all of which can be manipulated across user canvases. Google’s Teachable Machine model is used to create motion-based interactions. While Zoom currently offers 2 emoji options, Zoom+ users can react with virtually any image, gif, text, or other, straight from their canvas. Zoom+ is a personalized user experience, providing tools to expressively communicate and engage.