Enhancing Microsoft Office: New Copilot AI Features Boost App Functionality

Microsoft is expanding its $30 per user Microsoft 365 Copilot monthly subscription with new features aimed at enhancing AI integration in Office applications. Key updates include:

- Excel: Following the introduction of Python integration, Excel users can now leverage Copilot to perform advanced analyses such as forecasting, risk analysis, and data visualization using natural language—no coding required. Jared Spataro, Microsoft’s corporate vice president of AI, describes this as akin to adding a skilled data analyst to your team. The Copilot and Python integration in Excel is now available for public preview, alongside general availability for Copilot subscribers. Enhancements also include support for XLOOKUP, SUMIF, and enhanced chart and PivotTable generation.

- PowerPoint: Copilot features an upgraded narrative builder, allowing users to quickly generate slide deck drafts. The AI assistant can utilize company-branded templates and incorporate images from SharePoint libraries.

- Microsoft Teams: Copilot will soon summarize conversations from text chats and meetings, helping organizers track unanswered questions. Spataro notes that customers report significant value from Copilot in Teams, stating it has changed meetings profoundly.

- Outlook: Enhancements to Copilot include a new "prioritize my inbox" feature, which automatically organizes emails. Users will soon be able to instruct Copilot on specific topics, keywords, and contacts that matter to them, marking these emails as high priority.

- Word: Upcoming updates will enable users to reference data from emails, meetings, and documents seamlessly, simplifying the inclusion of attachments and meeting points.

- OneDrive: A file comparison tool will allow users to summarize and compare multiple files to pinpoint differences easily.

Microsoft's upgrades to Copilot are targeted at making the AI assistant more appealing to businesses, including the introduction of Copilot Pages and AI agents for task automation. Despite a previous lukewarm reception for the paid version, recent reports indicate that 60 percent of the Fortune 500 now utilize Copilot, with a near doubling of daily users quarter-over-quarter. Vodafone has also decided to adopt Microsoft 365 Copilot, securing 68,000 licenses for its workforce after successful trials highlighted early benefits.