About the 14inch M1 Max Battery Life

If you are doing a zoom call, unless you are literally on the beach, plug it in.

That computer is a battery-CAPABLE device. It is not optimized as a battery-operated device. (It is NOT an iPhone.)

Your computer performs best when connected to AC power. It can use the full output of the Power Adapter AND when doing especially challenging work will also freely "borrow" power from the battery. In some cases, even with the power adapter connected, the charged state may even decline during stressful work.

We’re not Apple Support. We’re other users, like you.

Here is how to see which apps are using power:

View energy consumption in Activity Monitor on Mac - Apple Support

From that, you can determine which apps are active. Heavy network activity, video, data compression, and graphics—typical of conferencing apps—will all consume battery.

99% battery health is fine, too.

I’d suggest contacting Apple Support directly, and ask them about this, as you’re probably not going to be satisfied with the “video conferencing consumes lots of power” answer you’ll likely get around here. Use the Get Support button in the upper right, and discuss this with the folks that do work for Apple.

If you are using video calling on your MBP for 2 - 5 hours on a single charge, it is very battery intensive. The harder you use the battery, the shorter duration the battery will last. Are you not in a place where the MBP can be plugged in during these calls? If you are, keep it plugged in.

Check the condition of your Mac notebook’s battery - Apple Support

Determine battery cycle count for Mac notebooks - Apple Support

Christophera61 wrote:

zoom calls/chats or video streaming?

So you are asking why heavy internet and video use uses more battery power? That's simply how batteries work. The more you use them, the lower the charge.