What is Microsoft Power Automate?
Microsoft Power Automate (formerly Microsoft Flow) is a cloud-based workflow automation platform that enables businesses to create automated workflows between apps and services. It's part of the Microsoft Power Platform, which includes Power Apps, Power BI, and Copilot Studio.
For meeting automation specifically, Power Automate allows you to build workflows that automatically process Teams meeting transcripts, distribute summaries to stakeholders, sync meeting notes to project management tools, and trigger follow-up actions based on meeting content.
The 2025 release wave introduces AI-First capabilities including generative actions, intelligent document processing, and the ability to describe flows in natural language through Copilot integration. This makes it easier than ever to automate complex meeting workflows without extensive coding knowledge.
Meeting Automation Capabilities
Teams Transcript Automation
Power Automate can detect when meeting transcripts become available and automatically download, process, and store them. Using Microsoft Graph API, you can configure change notifications to get alerted whenever a transcript is ready after a meeting.
Note: These are metered APIs and require appropriate permissions in Azure AD for application-level access.
AI-Powered Meeting Summarization
By integrating with Azure OpenAI or connecting to OpenAI Studio, Power Automate flows can automatically summarize meeting transcripts using GPT-4. Popular workflows wait 15 minutes post-meeting, chunk the transcript to avoid token limits, then send summarized notes to the meeting organizer for approval before distribution.
Automatic Recording & Transcription
Power Automate can use Microsoft Graph API to automatically enable recording and transcription for Teams meetings. Once you have the meeting Join URL, flows can update meeting settings to ensure every call is recorded with live transcription enabled.
Transcript Storage Options
- Save to SharePoint folders alongside video recordings
- Store in OneDrive for personal access
- Push to Notion databases or other tools
Desktop Automation (RPA)
Power Automate Desktop enables robotic process automation (RPA) for Windows PCs. This allows unattended flows that run without any user logged in - perfect for overnight processing of meeting recordings, scheduled data entry, or batch transcript processing.
Desktop flows require the Power Automate Process license ($150/bot/month) for unattended automation.
Microsoft Teams Integration
Power Automate offers native integration with Microsoft Teams, making it the go-to choice for organizations already invested in the Microsoft ecosystem. The integration supports automated notifications, task assignments, and approvals directly within Teams channels and chats.
Common Teams Automation Use Cases
Meeting Notifications
- Post meeting summaries to channels
- Notify stakeholders of action items
- Send recap messages to DMs
Workflow Triggers
- Create Planner tasks from meetings
- Update SharePoint lists automatically
- Sync meeting data to Excel
Key Features
AI Copilot Integration
Describe workflows in natural language and let AI build them for you. The next-generation copilot helps create, improve, and iterate on flows within the designer.
Extensive Connectivity
Connect to over 1000 services including Salesforce, SAP, Oracle, and custom APIs. Standard connectors for Microsoft 365 services are included free.
Process Mining
Discover automation opportunities by analyzing how your organization works. Task mining and process mining help identify repetitive tasks that can be automated.
AI Builder
Built-in AI capabilities for intelligent document processing, form processing, and text extraction without needing data science expertise.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Deep Microsoft Integration: Seamless connectivity with Teams, SharePoint, Outlook, Excel, and the entire Microsoft 365 ecosystem
- Free with M365: Basic capabilities included at no extra cost with Microsoft 365 Business licenses
- AI-Powered Creation: Copilot lets you describe workflows in plain English and generates the automation
- Extensive Templates: Hundreds of pre-built templates for common automation scenarios
- SOC 2 compliant with admin controls, SSO, and governance features
Cons
- Premium Connectors Cost Extra: Salesforce, SAP, Oracle, and other enterprise connectors require premium licenses
- Complex Pricing: Multiple license types (per-user, per-flow, per-bot) can make cost estimation challenging
- Learning Curve: Advanced meeting automation requires Graph API knowledge and Azure configuration
- Run Limits: Free tier limited to ~750 runs/month; premium needed for high-volume automation
- Not a Dedicated Meeting Tool: Unlike purpose-built meeting AI tools, requires custom setup for transcript processing
Power Automate Pricing 2025
Power Automate offers multiple licensing options depending on your automation needs. Many organizations already have basic capabilities included with their Microsoft 365 subscription.
M365 Included
- ~750 runs/month
- Standard connectors only
- Teams, SharePoint, Outlook
- Pre-built templates
Premium
- Unlimited runs
- Premium connectors
- Attended RPA
- AI Builder credits
Process
- Unattended automation
- Scheduled processing
- Overnight batch jobs
- Dedicated bot machines
Hosted RPA
- Microsoft-hosted VMs
- No infrastructure needed
- Auto-scaling
- 24/7 availability
Best Use Cases for Meeting Automation
Ideal For
- Microsoft-centric organizations: Companies already using Teams, SharePoint, and M365 extensively
- Custom workflow needs: Teams requiring specific meeting-to-action automations tailored to their process
- Enterprise compliance: Organizations needing governance controls and audit trails for meeting data
- Multi-system integration: Companies connecting meeting data to CRM, ERP, or custom databases
Consider Alternatives If
- You need instant meeting AI: Purpose-built tools like Fireflies or Otter provide ready-to-use transcription without setup
- You use Zoom or Google Meet primarily: While possible, Power Automate works best with Teams
- You want zero configuration: Meeting AI tools offer plug-and-play experiences Power Automate cannot match
- Small team with simple needs: The overhead may not justify the benefits for basic meeting notes
Setting Up Meeting Transcript Automation
- 1
Navigate to Power Automate
Sign in with your Microsoft 365 account and click Create > Automated cloud flow.
- 2
Choose Your Trigger
Select "When a new file is created in a folder" for transcripts stored in OneDrive/SharePoint, or configure Graph API webhooks for real-time notifications.
- 3
Add Processing Actions
Add "Get file content" to extract the transcript text. Optionally use AI Builder or Azure OpenAI to summarize key points.
- 4
Configure Distribution
Add "Post a message in a chat or channel" to send summaries to Teams. Insert the extracted/summarized content into the message body.
- 5
Test and Activate
Run a test with a sample transcript, verify the output, then activate the flow for production use.
Power Automate vs. Dedicated Meeting AI Tools
| Feature | Power Automate | Meeting AI Tools |
|---|---|---|
| Setup Required | Custom workflow configuration | Plug-and-play |
| Transcription | Via Teams/Graph API | Built-in, real-time |
| AI Summarization | Requires Azure OpenAI setup | Built-in, automatic |
| Customization | Highly customizable | Limited to tool features |
| Platform Support | Best with Teams | Zoom, Meet, Teams, etc. |
| Starting Price | Free with M365 | Free tiers available |
