Microsoft just changed the rules for its Copilot app. The company announced a suite of new features, such as an AI agent that is always on and a coding assistant, designed to make Copilot more than just a chatbot and a workspace for office workers on Friday.
Copilot Now Builds Software, Not Just Answers Questions
The standout feature is “Code” which enables users to build apps, dashboards and other software apps with simple natural language instructions. This is achieved using the same technology used by GitHub Copilot, except that now there's no need for syntax to create something functional. It's available to early-access customers at the end of the month. Microsoft 365 Premium and Pro users will be able to see a preview later this year.
This is important because it allows unschooled people to make software. A marketing manager who is creating a tracking dashboard. A finance manager using a computer to create a report. The tool is not meant as a replacement for developers, it's just eliminating the need for one for small, common tasks.
Meet Autopilot: Microsoft's Answer to the AI Agent Problem
In addition to Code, Microsoft also released an updated version of its “Scout” AI agent, dubbed “Autopilot.” Autopilot is not a setting in a menu, it is its own entity in a company's directory with permissions set and managed by the administrator.
That's the true story. While AI agents may not be ready for use, the majority of companies have been hesitant to put them to work simply because no one wanted to give them access. Security, compliance and governance issues have barred agents from the enterprise, Annie Pearl, corporate vice president of Copilot Product, put it simply. Microsoft's answer is to make Autopilot an employee, with a specific job to perform and a leash.In the Microsoft approach, Autopilot is an employee, one with a specific job and a leash, not a free-roaming script with unlimited access.
Word, Excel, and PowerPoint Move Inside Copilot
Microsoft also integrated its core Office applications (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint) right into Copilot. Users can now co-work on documents and spreadsheets directly within the AI tool instead of switching between windows. In the move, Microsoft lays out its vision of where the Copilot lives beyond being just a feature of Office to where Office gets done.
Cost Visibility Becomes Part of the Package
Perhaps most overlooked, but is practical anyway, is the addition of cost-management tools from Microsoft, which provides employees with a direct view of the costs of their AI usage. However, as businesses implement AI on a larger scale, some have found their usage charges to be significantly higher than anticipated.But many have been surprised by bills from AI usage that go beyond their expectations as they scale up. It is a small change for a good cause — to provide consumers with a better understanding of their own spending — and a check on spend before it's a surprise on someone's desk.
Why This Matters Right Now
Microsoft is working hard to move Copilot away from a chat application. The competition from ChatGPT and Claude has ramped up, and it isn't enough to provide good responses to questions to keep enterprise customers. In a single announcement, Microsoft is taking a gamble that usefulness, not novelty, is the answer to retaining business customers: code generation, a governed AI agent, embedded Office apps, and cost transparency.
Markets responded well. In early trading, the stock of the Redmond, Washington-based company climbed some 3% after the announcement, which was a very small but positive sign that investors believe this is a step forward in the right direction, and not yet another drop in features.
The greater plan: Microsoft's not attempting to make Copilot smarter. It's attempting to become a must-have.
