Microsoft reveals Teams, an app meant to let people talk to each other at work

The app takes on Slack and Hipchat, and hopes that integration with Microsoft Office can let it take on its competitors

Allison O'Mahoney speaks at a live Microsoft event in the Manhattan borough of New York City, U.S.,October 26, 2016 (REUTERS/Lucas Jackson)

Microsoft has released a new chat program meant to let colleagues talk to each other.

The app will allow people to chat as well as to work together on documents at the same time, in a way similar to Google Docs.

But its main competitor will be apps like Slack and Hipchat, which are both instant messaging services that have taken over many connected offices.

Called Microsoft Teams, the company's new app is built into its Office 365 software, which is a version of popular work apps like Word, PowerPoint and Excel that is hosted in the cloud. People can work on those projects within the new program, using all of those apps.

But they'll also be able to use updated features that allow people to share emoji, GIFs and stickers within their conversations. They'll also be able to have voice and video calls.

The software will be a direct competitor to Slack, the chat-based software aimed at groups of workers that launched in 2013.

Ahead of Microsoft's announcement, the firm placed a full back-page advert in Wednesday's New York Times in which Slack said it was "genuinely excited to have some competition".

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said Teams was aimed at improving the way people communicate when working.

"At Microsoft we aim to empower every person and organisation with the technology to be more productive as individuals and in groups," he said.

"Office 365 is the broadest toolkit and platform for creation, communication and collaboration. Microsoft Teams adds a new experience to Office 365 as the chat-based workspace designed to empower the art of teams."

Microsoft revealed last week that Office 365 now has 85 million monthly active users.

Additional reporting by Press Association