What's new in Atlassian: week of 9 November 2026

Each week we round up the Atlassian changes that matter if you run or use Confluence: what changed, who it affects and what to do about it, with a link to Atlassian's own source for every item. Developer and Marketplace news is left out unless it changes something for admins.

This week: automation steps start billing on 3 December, new admin controls for Atlassian's MCP server, Confluence Data Center bug-fix releases and the 11.1 preview, what's next on the Confluence roadmap, and what Atlassian's latest shareholder letter says about Rovo.

1. Automation steps start billing on 3 December, and Enterprise loses unlimited automation

What changed. Last week we covered Rovo credits. The other meter that starts on 3 December 2026 is automation, and for many sites it matters more. Usage is now counted in steps, not rule runs: every trigger, condition, action, branch and loop that runs counts as a step, and a condition that comes out false still counts unless no actions run. A rule with one trigger, one condition and two actions is four steps each time it runs. Since 5 November 2026, runs that perform no actions no longer count. Confluence includes 50 steps per month on Free, and 100, 250 and 500 steps per user per month on Standard, Premium and Enterprise. Allowances are pooled across your organisation, so Jira and Confluence share one total, and Atlassian says Enterprise plans "will no longer have unlimited automation". Extra usage is billed at $0.50 per 1,000 steps and is switched on by default for most organisations.

Who it affects. Organisation and billing admins on Confluence and Jira Cloud, and space admins whose automation rules run often, especially Enterprise sites that have never had to watch automation usage before.

What to do. Check current usage in Atlassian Administration under Usage, then Meters, then Automation steps. In Confluence, Settings, then Automation, then Usage shows which rules use the most. Count the steps in your busiest rules, not just the runs. Then decide whether to cap extra usage or turn it off. Be careful with the second option: if the allowance runs out with extra usage off, new automation stops until the allowance refreshes, and events that happen during the pause are not replayed. Prices can change, so check Atlassian's pages before you budget.

Sources: How is your automation usage calculated · Atlassian Automation licensing · Atlassian usage-based pricing

2. Atlassian MCP: Claude-issued managed authentication, and suggested edits for Confluence

What changed. Atlassian's MCP server, which lets AI assistants work with your Jira and Confluence content, picked up two changes. On 3 November Atlassian added support for Claude-issued Managed Auth, a form of enterprise-managed authentication. Instead of each user approving access on their own, organisation admins decide centrally who can authorise Claude to reach Atlassian tools, and with the Claude-issued option there is no need to set up a separate identity provider application. Since 29 October two Confluence tools for adding and reading suggested edits have also been rolling out, site by site, to users who have already approved the Confluence read and write toolsets.

Who it affects. Organisation admins whose teams use Claude, or other AI assistants, with Confluence, and anyone responsible for who can connect AI tools to company content.

What to do. If your organisation uses Claude, read Atlassian's setup guide: it needs the organisation admin role in Atlassian Administration and admin access on the Claude side. If AI assistants already have write access to Confluence, expect them to be able to propose suggested edits to pages, and check that this fits your review process.

Sources: Atlassian MCP changelog · Configure enterprise-managed authentication

3. Confluence Data Center: bug-fix releases, and an early look at 11.1

What changed. Atlassian has published bug-fix releases for both supported lines: Confluence 11.0.1, and 10.2.20 on the 10.2 Long Term Support line. On 4 November Atlassian also opened an early access programme for Confluence 11.1, describing the build as "a snapshot of our work in progress". Atlassian hasn't given a release date for 11.1.

Who it affects. Confluence Data Center admins. Cloud sites are updated by Atlassian, so this one isn't for them.

What to do. Read the issues resolved for your line and plan the update in your normal maintenance window. If you plan to move to 11.x next year, put the 11.1 preview on a test instance and ask your app vendors whether they are testing against it.

Sources: Confluence release notes · Confluence 11.1 release EAP available now

4. What's next on the Confluence roadmap

What changed. Atlassian's cloud roadmap lists several Confluence features as coming soon. Due in Q4 2026: Confluence agentic automations, which let "anyone in Confluence (with Studio permissions)" create automations, not just space admins, and Context Hub, which connects each page to the work, projects and people it relates to. Due in Q1 2027: native Confluence approvals, to "request and track formal approvals directly on Confluence pages", managed access links for sharing selected content across your organisation, and Performance Insights, which gives admins visibility into end-user performance. Atlassian gives quarters, not dates, and says timing is at its discretion and can change.

Who it affects. Confluence admins planning governance, and anyone who already runs page approvals or sharing rules with an app or a manual process.

What to do. Note that agentic automations widen who can create automations at the same time as automation starts being metered, so decide who should have that permission before it arrives. If you run approvals today, list what your process needs so you can compare it with Atlassian's version when it ships; Capable for Confluence already adds approvals to pages if you need them now.

Source: Atlassian Cloud roadmap

5. What Atlassian's Q1 FY27 shareholder letter says about Rovo

What changed. In its Q1 FY27 letter to shareholders on 5 November, Atlassian said users of Rovo agents have doubled in the last six months, that Rovo agentic automations are up nine times year on year, and that "more than 80% of highly regulated Cloud customers have Rovo enabled". It also said that users who adopt the Atlassian MCP server create 75% more in Confluence on average. The letter doesn't mention pricing or usage-based billing.

Who it affects. Confluence admins and content owners, particularly in regulated organisations where Rovo may already be switched on.

What to do. If Rovo is enabled on your site, treat it as part of your governance: AI features work from the content people can see, so review spaces that are open to everyone, archive pages nobody owns, and agree who reviews pages that AI helped to write. More AI-assisted content means more to review, not less.

Source: Our Q1 FY27 letter to shareholders

That's the week

Spotted something we missed, or want a change explained in more depth? Tell us and we'll cover it next week. Dates and prices are as Atlassian published them on 9 November 2026 and can change, so check the linked source before you act.

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