Microsoft Word Audio Summary with M365 Copilot

I found this new feature really fascinating. With M365 Copilot and Microsoft Word, you can now generate audio summaries of documents—almost like turning them into mini podcasts. This means I no longer have to read through lengthy documents right away; instead, I can listen to a summary while on the move. If you wish, you can even save these recordings to your OneDrive. It's a fantastic tool, especially for someone like me who reads slowly.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365insiderblog/listen-to-an-audio-overview-of-a-document-with-microsoft-365-copilot-in-word/4439362

New Teams Channel Agent

In September 2025, Microsoft Teams introduced a new M365 Copilot feature known as Channel Agent. The Channel Agent operates within a Teams channel, utilizing conversation history, documents, and other resources to assist users. Often, Teams channels are created to support specific initiatives or projects. Channel Agent is capable of generating structured reports, responding to queries, capturing and tracking tasks, and creating team notes by leveraging the information available within the channel.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365insiderblog/introducing-channel-agent-in-teams/4455451

Add M365 Copilot to a Teams Group Chat

A new feature is being introduced to M365 Copilot and Microsoft Teams. Within group chats, users can now add Copilot as an additional participant. Once Copilot is included in the conversation, it can be instructed to complete various tasks, such as:

• Summarizing or answering questions from the chat.
• Compiling information from the discussion and creating a Word document.
• Bringing in supplementary information from the Web to enhance the conversation.

This functionality allows users to interact directly with Copilot within the Teams Group chat environment, streamlining workflows without the need to switch between applications.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365insiderblog/a-new-way-to-collaborate-with-copilot-in-teams-chats/4463655

New Microsoft Teams M365 Copilot Facilitator Agent

Microsoft Teams has introduced a new Facilitator Agent designed to enhance meeting focus and productivity. The Facilitator offers several key features:

• Tracks discussion topics and timing using visual timeline markers to help ensure conversations remain on schedule.
• Enables collaborative, real-time note-taking.
• Provides answers to questions by leveraging information from the meeting and online sources.
• Monitors tasks and assignments throughout the meeting.
• Instantly drafts documents in Word or Loop to support meeting content.
• Delivers improved experiences for chat, notes, and meeting timers when using Teams Room.
• Records ad-hoc discussions to ensure no valuable insights are overlooked.

I have observed the Facilitator Agent in meetings and found the topic and time tracker, integrated with the meeting agenda, particularly effective in helping participants address each subject promptly.

Please note that access to these functionalities requires an M365 Copilot license.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365insiderblog/keep-meetings-focused-and-productive-with-facilitator-in-teams/4456029

New M365 Copilot Surveys Agent

The new Surveys Agent is now available with M365 Copilot, offering a pre-built solution that simplifies the survey creation process. Users no longer need to invest significant effort in designing or configuring surveys; by simply describing the survey’s purpose and objectives, Copilot will draft and refine questions, facilitate survey deployment, send invitations and reminders, track progress, and analyze results. The Surveys Agent also provides recommendations regarding optimal timelines and distribution channels, as well as manages invitation preparation and delivery. Additionally, it automatically monitors response rates, dispatches reminders, and notifies users when it is appropriate to review collected data. Overall, the Surveys Agent delivers comprehensive life-cycle support for creating, launching, managing, and reviewing survey data.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoftformsblog/shipped-surveys-agent-now-live-for-customers-in-microsoft-365-copilot-frontier-p/4444421

What's New in M365 Copilot in Oct 2025

There were a lot of new interesting new capabilities being released into M365 Copilot in the month of Oct 2025.  Here are the ones that caught my eye:

• New Session Persistence Enhancements: Ensures users can seamlessly continue conversations when navigating away from a chat session.
• Chat GPT-5 will become the new default model for Copilot Chat.  Currently, you must select it.
• Microsoft Teams Audio Recap is being released.  This gives users the ability to get pod-cast style audio recaps of meetings they select in newscast, executive or casual formats.  You no longer have to sit there and read tons of recaps, you can now listen to the recaps on your drive home!
• Have Copilot draft meeting agendas based on when the meeting is, the attendees, title and users meeting inputs.  Copilot will leverage all your M365 Copilot data in email, chat, and documents and then create an agenda for you.
• Copilot Chat Capabilities with Exchange Online Calendar: 
• Search a calendar based on meeting organizers making it super easy to get all meeting information and summaries.
• Seach calendars that you have been delegated access to which is great for executive assistants to pull information about meetings.
• Search calendars based on meeting categories like title, date, time and location.
• When opening an Office file on a mobile device, you can use Copilot Chat in the file “preview” which streamlines the user experience to ask questions.
• The new Surveys Agent has been rolled out.  This is an agent that automates the workflow of creating surveys.
• Copilot in PowerPoint speaker notes generation.
• Bing web cards will now be appearing in Copilot Chat with quick visualizations of weather, stocks, sports, new, current events, etc.
• New simple Copilot Chat APIs allows users to simply sent prompts to the API and get back results.
• M365 Copilot Usage reports is being rolled out to GCC cloud!
• New M365 Copilot usage reports that provide detailed metrics on the total prompt submissions at both organizational and user levels.
• New Agent ownership reassignment enables administrators to transfer ownership of agents within the organization with an employee leaves or changes roles.
• Administrators can export their agent inventory along with metadata to perform independent review and analysis of all agents.
• Administrators can pin M365 Companion Apps (People, Files and Calendar) in all user taskbars.  These apps give users real time information integrated with Copilot.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/what%E2%80%99s-new-in-microsoft-365-copilot--october-2025/4464046

Microsoft Teams Audio Recap with M365 Copilot

Microsoft Teams is introducing a new feature called Audio Recap. This tool will automatically generate podcast-style summaries of your meetings, so you don’t have to read through lengthy recaps. It’s especially useful if you have lots of meetings, can’t attend them all, or want to catch up on the go. You can select multiple meetings in Teams and have audio recaps created, which can then be played on your computer or mobile device, even while you’re driving home. You can also choose your preferred listening style—Executive, Newscast, or Casual—and the summary will match that format.

References: 

• https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365insiderblog/listen-to-an-audio-recap-of-your-meetings-in-teams/4450900
• https://medius.microsoft.com/Embed/video-nc/d4191e9f-f6d4-481d-9d6b-af9bc172f762?r=558446251512
• https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/roadmap?id=490051

M365 Copilot Web Grounding Protection

This article is concise yet thorough, covering the key factors involved in enabling web-grounded searches with M365 Copilot chat.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/microsoft-365-copilot-web-search-delivering-multiple-layers-of-protection-and-co/4458224

Many enterprise clients are addressing risk considerations associated with enabling web grounding. Microsoft is committed to delivering an AI solution that aligns with and respects the data protection expectations of enterprise customers.

Unlike traditional search engines, which are designed for broad consumer use, M365 Copilot Chat operates as an enterprise service offering layered controls to safeguard business information. M365 Copilot provides users and organizations with clear visibility regarding the search terms utilized during web queries; each query is anonymized, with all user and tenant identifiers removed, and no files uploaded or stored within the M365 tenant are ever incorporated. All result processing occurs strictly within the M365 control boundary. Users benefit from full transparency, including comprehensive citations and disclosure of the exact keywords used in generating results.

The article further outlines additional administrative controls, user protections, query safeguarding measures, and Microsoft’s contractual commitments. It also offers recommendations for organizations preparing to implement M365 Copilot, emphasizing data loss prevention, audit logging, and robust user training.

M365 Copilot Retention, Logging and eDiscovery

M365 Copilot is an advanced AI solution designed to address complex business needs. For those interested in observing its practical capabilities, the following recording provides a clear demonstration of several key features:

• Establish retention policies for M365 Copilot data, noting that all prompts and responses generated by Copilot are retained within the user’s mailbox.
• Access Unified Audit Logs to review user activity and facilitate investigations.
• Utilize eDiscovery for Copilot to efficiently conduct comprehensive searches in support of case management.

Demonstration and Recording: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/healthcareandlifesciencesblog/copilot-retention-auditing-and-ediscovery-a-deep-dive/4464910

M365 Copilot with Companion Apps

M365 Companion Apps have recently been introduced, including People, Files, and Calendar, which became available earlier this summer. These compact applications can be pinned to the task bar for quick access to essential information, providing users with focused data without requiring the launch of full-scale applications.

The integration of M365 Copilot with these Companion Apps has enhanced their functionality, making them more intelligent and capable of delivering real-time, relevant insights:

• The People App displays recent communications, highlights key responsibilities, and suggests prompts to facilitate collaboration throughout the organization.
• The Files App summarizes Office documents, enables users to ask questions, and allows for on-the-spot data analysis without opening the full Office file.
• The Calendar App provides meeting summaries and recaps directly, eliminating the need to access Microsoft Teams.

These enhancements contribute to improved efficiency and convenience for users performing quick tasks throughout the workday.

References: 

• https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365insiderblog/work-smarter-with-copilot-in-the-people-files-and-calendar-apps/4462091
• https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365insiderblog/stay-in-the-flow-with-microsoft-365-companion-apps/4419809

M365 Copilot Teams Mode

Teams Mode for M365 Copilot is a new feature about to be released for public preview. It offers an engaging option that lets users start a M365 Copilot Chat as a private conversation between themselves and Copilot. When they want to include others, they can simply choose “start a group chat” within M365 Copilot Chat. This action brings everyone, along with Copilot, into a Teams group chat so they can all continue discussing with Copilot.

For instance, a business analyst might begin researching with Copilot Chat and later invite colleagues to join. Together, they can keep the conversation going and ask Copilot questions based on their varying expertise.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/introducing-teams-mode-for-microsoft-365-copilot/4463259

M365 Copilot Research with Computer Use

A new feature, M365 Copilot Researcher with Computer Use, is being introduced. Computer Use enables secure access to public, gated, and interactive web content via a virtual computer acting on behalf of the user. When utilizing the Researcher Agent for analysis, Computer Use can retrieve premium and authenticated information as necessary, actively navigating and interacting with data sources. The retrieved information is then incorporated to deliver comprehensive insights.

The underlying process involves Copilot orchestrating the creation of a virtual sandbox machine instance. Subsequently, an AI-powered browser is launched to access website data on the user's behalf in a controlled environment.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/introducing-researcher-with-computer-use-in-microsoft-365-copilot/4464766

September 2025 Microsoft Teams Updates

Microsoft Teams had several import releases in the month of September 2025.  Here are the top ones that caught my attention:

• Agents in channels (Public Preview): Each channel can now have a Channel Agent that becomes an expert on information within that Teams Channel.  The Agent will be named after the Channel, and will help with common tasks such as identifying important deadlines buried in the conversations, summarizing status, assigning tasks and answering questions.
• Threads in Channels: I was really happy to see this.  You now have the ability to reply to specific messaging, while keeping conversations grouped together preserving the flow and context of a conversation.
• Enhanced AI thread summary in Channels: Now there are AI-generated thread summaries available in a post/reply and threaded channels.  This really helps with lengthy conversations.  Now you do not have to scroll around to read information; you have a summary right there for you to scan before you post something.
• Meeting Facilitator Agent is now GA.  This Agent helps keeps meetings focused and organized.  The agent will set an agenda based know the invitation and inferred goals from the discussion, it will keep conversations on track with visible timelines and reminders, it will capture real-time notes, answer questions within the context of the meeting, records and assigns tasks, etc.  
• Enhanced Meeting Protection – Prevent Screen Captures: This requires Teams Premium. This prevents users from taking screen captures.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoftteamsblog/what%E2%80%99s-new-in-microsoft-teams--september-2025/4457965

M365 Copilot Agent Store and Marketplace

Back in May 2025, it was announced that the Agent Store and Marketplace were under development.  As of October 2025, the Agent Store and Marketplace is now launched.  The Agent Store is a centralized location where agents built by Microsoft, partners and customers can be published.  All third-party agents go through rigorous validation process to meet enterprise security, compliance and performance standards.  Customers and also use the Agent Store as a distribution tool to make their own agents available to their end users.  IT admins have full control and governance over the Agents that are available in the Agent Store.

References:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-cloud/blog/2025/09/25/empower-your-workforce-with-agents-in-microsoft-365-copilot/

https://devblogs.microsoft.com/microsoft365dev/introducing-the-agent-store-build-publish-and-discover-agents-in-microsoft-365-copilot/  

Microsoft 365 Apps Icons to be Refreshed

It was announced that all the Office Icons are being refreshed. I liked this picture showing the evolution of the Office icons since 2001.

Reference: https://microsoft.design/articles/fluid-forms-vibrant-colors/

New Agent Mode in with M365 Copilot

A new experience called vibe working is being launched within M365 Copilot called Agent Mode within Office Apps.  If you are not familiar with the term “vibe working”, it is a new agentic, collaborative workflow where users and AI iteratively refine content together.  It is really slick.

When running in Agent Mode, users will have an interactive, conversational experience with Copilot for creating and modifying content and data in solutions like Microsoft Word and Excel.  For instance, when you are in Word, you just ask Copilot that you need it to create content like “Please create me a report about XYZ customer, along with recent market trends influencing customers decisions and what solutions they should consider”.  Copilot will write this content.  You can then ask Copilot to iterate on by asking to more emphasis on a particular solution, and it will go through modifying it; pretty amazing.

Same for Excel, when running in Agent Mode, you can ask Copilot to do a full analysis of data a spreadsheet, and ask for Copilot to provide specific insights that that you need to have.  Copilot will then create formulas and data visualizations to provide you that insight.

Additionally, there is a new Office Agent that is available in Copilot Chat.  This enables users to create Word and PowerPoint documents inside of Chat without having to open the Office App.  Copilot Chat will do deep research and reasoning to produce high quality content.

Reference: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2025/09/29/vibe-working-introducing-agent-mode-and-office-agent-in-microsoft-365-copilot/

M365 Copilot and Anthropic Opus 4.1

There was an important announcement this week.  M365 Copilot will now allow users to leverage Anthropic Opus 4.1 with the Researcher agent.  This was exciting to see because up till now, M365 Copilot could only work with ChatGPT model.  Frankly, I had been telling customers that model selection was not feature of M365 Copilot, however now it is, and it is super exciting to see.

Reference: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2025/09/24/expanding-model-choice-in-microsoft-365-copilot/

W365 Frontline GCC/GCCH, W365 Cloud Apps Preview and W365 Boot Updates

There were a couple new announcements with Windows 365 (W365) that are interesting.

W365 Frontline is now available in GCC and GCCH Clouds

W365 Frontline is developed to provide organizations with cost-efficient cloud PC solutions for users who require part-time or occasional access to virtual desktops. The service offers two distinct modes: Dedicated and Shared.

• Dedicated Mode: Tailored for shift-based, part-time, or temporary personnel, this mode permits Cloud PC usage exclusively during working hours. Each license allows up to three distinct user assignments; however, only one Cloud PC may be active at any given time. This configuration is well-suited for environments with rotating shifts or non-overlapping schedules.
• Shared Mode: In this arrangement, a single license can be utilized sequentially by multiple users within a group. Upon user logout, the desktop session is reset, ensuring no user data is retained.

The advantages of W365 Frontline include enhanced cost optimization by eliminating the need for individual licenses for every user. Additionally, it serves as an efficient replacement for legacy VDI systems, offering a scalable, secure, and straightforward Cloud PC management solution.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/windows-itpro-blog/announcing-windows-365-frontline-for-gcc-and-gcch/4452096

W365 Cloud Apps in Public Review

Administrators can assign users access to specific cloud-delivered apps instead of a Cloud PC. This approach is suitable for organizations aiming to streamline app delivery and reduce the overhead associated with virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI). W365 Cloud Apps operates on W365 Frontline Cloud PCs in Shared Mode. W365 Frontline licensing permits Cloud PC access for shift-based or part-time workers and supports unlimited users per license, with one active session allowed at a time. W365 Cloud Apps provides streaming access to essential applications such as Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Edge without requiring users to load a full desktop environment.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/windows-itpro-blog/windows-365-cloud-apps-are-now-in-public-preview/4453397

W365 Boot and Connection Center new experiences

When using a Windows 11 device, W365 Boot enables users to sign directly into their Cloud PC as the main Windows interface. This provides a streamlined method for accessing Cloud PCs. New features include:

• Connection Center now supports selection among multiple Cloud PCs during login.
• Improved troubleshooting and diagnostics capabilities.
• More consistent connection process.
• Built-in cross-region disaster recovery, allowing users to connect through different regions if one is unavailable.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/windows-itpro-blog/windows-365-boot-connection-center--improved-experience---generally-available/4453399 

M365 Copilot Readiness and Remediation

 This concise article provides an overview of how organizations can effectively prepare for the introduction of M365 Copilot. A primary concern often encountered is the risk of data oversharing accumulated over time and determining where to initiate data remediation. Much of this remediation should focus on SharePoint Online and OneDrive for Business. Common issues include:

• Site privacy settings that grant organizational-wide access.
• Default sharing options configured to “everyone.”
• Broken permission inheritance, where site permissions differ from those at the folder or file level.
• Sharing with the “everyone except external users” domain group.
• Sites and files lacking sensitivity labels.

It is important to note that solutions such as M365 Copilot will access all data available to a user when generating results. While this data is also accessible via search, M365 Copilot significantly streamlines the discovery process.

One of the key tools for identifying areas requiring remediation is SharePoint Advanced Management (SAM). Key features of SAM include:

• Content Management Assessment: Generates reports highlighting misconfigurations, inactivity, permission issues, and lifecycle risks across SharePoint sites.
• Site Lifecycle Management: Automatically detects inactive or ownerless sites and recommends remediation actions, such as marking sites as read-only, archiving them, or prompting owners to maintain content.
• Oversharing Control with Permission State Reports: Offers comprehensive reports on site permissions across M365, identifying broken inheritance, public links, and excessive group permissions. Remediation actions can be initiated, including site access reviews or the application of Restricted Access and Restricted Content Discovery controls.
• Restricted Access Control: Enables administrators to restrict site access to a specified user list, overriding existing permissions for rapid content lock-down until remediation is completed.
• Restricted Content Discovery (RCD) and Delegation: RCD allows administrators to prevent overshared sites from being accessed by M365 Copilot.

While SAM offers a robust starting point, additional solutions such as Data Security Posture Management (DSPM) can further address oversharing risks. DSPM assesses active SharePoint sites, surfaces risks related to sensitive files and their protection, identifies overexposed sharing patterns, and provides insights into site usage.

Organizations are also encouraged to utilize Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention policies to prevent Copilot from processing data with certain sensitivity labels. Moreover, implementing Microsoft Purview Information Protection enables the creation of auto-labeling policies that apply protections like encryption for file access control.

Finally, it is advisable to use Microsoft Purview Data Lifecycle Management to establish retention policies for data governance and automated deletion of outdated information. This ensures Copilot does not reference obsolete content when generating responses.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/mitigate-oversharing-to-govern-microsoft-365-copilot-and-agents/4448744 

M365 Copilot Chat now available in Office Apps

There was an important announcement this week.  M365 Copilot Chat is now available in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and OneNote for all users without additional licensing.

Some important notes:

• This is for web-grounded chat only.
• This is the same Copilot Chat experience that all users have access to via a browser.
• If you want M365 Copilot Chat to return data from the M365 Graph with data from Teams, Exchange, SharePoint and OneDrive, you must have a M365 Copilot add-on license for the user.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/copilot-chat-comes-to-the-microsoft-365-apps/4453349 

Microsoft Teams August 2025 Updates

I typically forget to look at the monthly Microsoft Teams blog posting they do every month.  There are always several new features can capabilities being introduced each month.  Here are a couple that caught my eye.

• New filtering for messages in chat and channels.
• Save messages view.  You have the ability to bookmark important chat messages and go to a centralized view that will show you everything you have booked marked across Teams chats.
• Multiple emoji reactions….yes I can finally many, not just one.
• Personal meeting templates allows you to create meeting templates that are based on your preferences for external meetings, internal 1:1 meeting, partner meetings, etc.
• Organizers can now message attendees in the lobby before letting them in.  For instance, “hey we will let you admit you in 2 mins we are running late”.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoftteamsblog/what%E2%80%99s-new-in-microsoft-teams--august-2025/4448706

New SharePoint AI Pages

AI is now being introduced into SharePoint Pages.  Now when you are authoring SharePoint pages, you will be given AI prompts to assist you with the authoring of content directly in SharePoint.  See here for more information.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/spblog/sharepoint-pages-introducing-sections-with-ai/4422571

Microsoft Copilot Chat now has GPT-5

GPT-5 is now integrated into M365 Copilot, representing a notable advancement and fulfilling Microsoft's commitment to incorporating the latest OpenAI models into M365. With GPT-5, Copilot can process prompts using a real-time router that selects the most appropriate model to generate a response. Furthermore, Copilot is designed to deliver rapid replies for efficient user experience. For complex and open-ended inquiries, Copilot identifies when advanced reasoning is necessary and utilizes GPT-5’s enhanced reasoning capabilities.

For more information, read this >> https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2025/08/07/available-today-gpt-5-in-microsoft-365-copilot/

M365 Copilot Memory

M365 Copilot continues to evolve with new capabilities. M365 Copilot Memory will be introduced in July 2025 and will be enabled by default. This feature allows Copilot to retain key information about users, such as preferences, working styles, and recurring topics, thereby tailoring responses accordingly. Copilot will analyze relevant details and interactions to understand user preferences and requirements. Additionally, users can instruct Copilot to remember specific items of interest and define desired interaction styles, such as requesting more formal communication. These enhancements are designed to further improve the assistant's usefulness.

Users maintain control over their data, with the option to disable memory, as well as view, edit, or delete individual memories at any time.

Furthermore, memory training is available. Users may prompt Copilot to ask questions—such as five questions regarding writing style or ten questions covering workplace preferences—to refine its understanding and responsiveness.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/introducing-copilot-memory-a-more-productive-and-personalized-ai-for-the-way-you/4432059 

M365 Copilot Chat GCC Release

Microsoft Copilot Chat is now available in the GCC cloud and has been rolling out, with completion expected by the end of June 2025. This release provides Copilot Chat to all users without requiring an M365 Copilot Add-on license.

By default, web-grounding is turned off in GCC tenants. If web-grounding is enabled, users can use Copilot Chat with data from the Internet. The query leaves the GCC boundary, but all necessary internet data required by Copilot to provide a response is brought back and processed within the GCC compliance boundary. Therefore, the risk for organizations is minimal and comparable to users using a public Internet search engine to find answers. Additionally, organizations may benefit from increased security as all user interactions with Copilot Chat are discoverable and comply with Microsoft’s Enterprise Data Commitments.

If web-grounding remains disabled, users will still have access to a basic ChatGPT offering with Copilot Chat. Users can utilize files with Copilot Chat, but no additional Internet data will be available. Users are limited to a maximum file size of 512 MB per uploaded file and a maximum of three file uploads per day.

Reference >> https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/publicsectorblog/microsoft-365-copilot-chat-now-available-in-gcc/4426844

New M365 Copilot Tuning

Microsoft 365 Copilot Tuning is a new feature currently in preview. Microsoft 365 Copilot's large language model (LLM) is a general model used by all Microsoft 365 tenants. This LLM is not specific to any customer, and it is not a learning model. When users interact with Microsoft 365 Copilot, the general LLM along with Microsoft 365 data is used to generate responses. While this setup functions adequately, the responses are not entirely tailored to an organization's unique knowledge or approach.

With Microsoft 365 Copilot Tuning, users can now create fine-tuned models that perform domain-specific tasks related to their organization's knowledge. These models can be trained on a subset of data, such as authoritative documents in a library. Once created using domain-specific data from your tenant, these models can be utilized by a Copilot Studio agent. The tailored model remains within your tenant and does not revert to the generic Microsoft 365 Copilot LLM. Therefore, results provided by an agent leveraging a fine-tuned model created with your organization’s data will be more accurate and comprehensive. These models are low-code solutions that are straightforward to create using Copilot Studio.

Reference: 

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/copilot/microsoft-365/copilot-tuning-overview

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoftmechanicsblog/new-microsoft-365-copilot-tuning--create-fine-tuned-models-to-write-like-you-do/4416100

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2025/05/19/introducing-microsoft-365-copilot-tuning-multi-agent-orchestration-and-more-from-microsoft-build-2025/

New M365 Agent Store

It was just announced that there will be a new Agent Store being in M365 Copilot Chat.  This store can be used to obtain agents from Microsoft, your organization or third-party providers.

More Information: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/discover-new-agents-in-microsoft-365-innovation/4406363 

New AI Adoption Score Report

A new AI Adoption Score report is scheduled for release in the coming weeks. The report tracks usage patterns, gathers feedback from users, and analyzes feature adoption metrics to provide insights into Copilot's utilization. These reports can help organizations identify areas for improvement, assess training needs, and determine if users are fully leveraging Copilot's capabilities.  There are Peer Benchmark, Usage Frequency, and Feature Level Usage Insights reports, plus solutions to help communicate and message with end users to drive more adoption.

More Information:

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft_365blog/announcing-general-availability-of-ai-adoption-score/4403118 

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/adoption/ai-adoption-score?view=o365-worldwide

M365 Copilot Research and Analyst

There is a new, interesting M365 Copilot Agent that is called Researcher and Analyst.  Researcher and Analyst can work through complex tasks and produce insights leverage reasoning models, and chain of thought reasoning.  Supper interesting, recommend listening to the videos.

Reference:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2025/03/25/introducing-researcher-and-analyst-in-microsoft-365-copilot/

New Microsoft Team Calendar

In early February 2025, Microsoft Teams released a new calendar experience. This update provides a consistent and unified experience similar to what users have with Microsoft Outlook. The new calendar feature aims to make scheduling meetings more efficient, aligning closely with the richer calendar functionalities available in Outlook.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoftteamsblog/the-new-calendar-in-microsoft-teams-now-generally-available/4373598

Introducing SharePoint Agents

SharePoint Agents are a new solution currently rolling out.  SharePoint Agents are scoped agents aligned to a site and all the documents and content within it.  On every SharePoint site, you will see a copilot icon with a default agent that has been created.  Now you can leverage agents on targeted content.

It is also very simple to create additional agents that are scope to a site, library, folder or even relevant files.  Creation of agents is integrated in with the SharePoint Ribbons and menu system.

Once a SharePoint agent is created, these agents can be shared via email, Microsoft Teams or referenced through Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat.  

SharePoint Agents are licensed through the Microsoft 365 Copilot License without any additional charges.  Users who do not have a Microsoft 365 Copilot License can still create and use SharePoint agents if they have Copilot Studio capacity packs or pay-as-you-go meters enabled.

References:

https://adoption.microsoft.com/en-us/sharepoint-agents/ 

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/introducing-new-agents-in-microsoft-365/4296918

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/ignite-2024-sharepoint-agents-now-in-general-availability/4298746 

New Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat

There was a big announcement a couple of days ago that a new Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat is being introduced.  This new, slimmer capability provides organizations with free AI based chat with enterprise data controls for data privacy and security.  

With Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat users have the ability to have web ground chat, collaborate with Copilot Pages, file upload to analyze documents, generate images, etc.  See chart below for details.  Plus, Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat enables organizations to leverage Agents built with Copilot Studio.

Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat gives organizations and entry point solution to start early adoption of AI collaboration capabilities and then start enabling M365 Copilot Chat with Office data when they are ready.

References:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2025/01/15/copilot-for-all-introducing-microsoft-365-copilot-chat/

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/copilot-chat-brings-the-power-of-ai-to-every-microsoft-365-user/4369018

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/windows-itpro-blog/improved-copilot-experiences-for-commercial-organizations/4366315

M365 Copilot for Word and PowerPoint Announcements

There were tons of new announcements made back in November 2024 at Microsoft Ignite, and I am still digging my way through them all.  Specifically, M365 Copilot with Word and PowerPoint, there were some new scenarios announced which I found interesting.

Word Copilot

• You can now create new document content by referencing meeting or email content, in addition to previously being able to reference files.
• When drafting content in Word, Copilot will use files, emails, and meeting information to assist in drafting.
• Copilot will cite sources when drafting, allowing you to investigate how the content was created.
• New prompts provide examples to help you get started.
• The Coaching feature offers suggestions on structure, flow, and tone.
• An automatic summary feature for Word documents is available, which is useful for long files. A similar feature is also available in SharePoint/OneDrive to view a summary of the file without opening it.

PowerPoint Copilot

• Introducing the new Copilot PowerPoint Starter Template, designed to enable users to create branded presentations seamlessly.
• The Narrative Builder feature is based on a selected file and will generate a presentation with that content. Additionally, users can continue to add other files as they refine their narrative.
• Copilot utilizes images stored in asset libraries, including SharePoint Organization Asset Library and now Templafy.
• Once slides are created, Copilot can assist in rewriting the text on a slide, such as condensing the amount of text.
• Copilot facilitates the acquisition of images for your slides, whether by generating AI-created images with a simple prompt, selecting ideal stock photos, or incorporating brand-specific images.
• New features have been introduced to assist in finalizing a presentation, including auto-generated speaker notes, animations, and transitions.
• With Copilot Translation, you can translate an entire PowerPoint presentation into one of 40 languages while maintaining the design integrity of each slide.

References

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/what%E2%80%99s-new-in-microsoft-365-copilot-in-word-at-ignite-2024/4303448

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/what%E2%80%99s-new-in-microsoft-365-copilot-in-powerpoint-at-ignite-2024/4298971

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365insiderblog/keep-your-presentations-on-brand-with-copilot-in-powerpoint/4295913

Teams Premium Email Verification for External Users

A new Teams Premium feature called Email Verification for External Participants is scheduled to be released in early CY25. Organizations often need to allow external participants into meetings, but these participants may not have a Microsoft work, school, or personal account for sign-in. Requiring external users to sign in before attending an organization’s Teams meeting can provide additional assurance. However, not all external participants have accounts for sign-in.

This new feature will enable meetings to require "Anonymous users can join Teams meetings after verifying by email code". A one-time password will be sent to the attendee’s email, which they can use to join the meeting. Once the external user has joined the meeting, an "Email verified" label will appear next to their name, confirming to internal users that the external user has been verified.

This feature enhances Teams Premium's security capabilities and complements existing features such as watermarks, sensitivity labels, and end-to-end encryption.

References

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoftteamsblog/enhance-meeting-security-with-teams-premium%E2%80%99s-email-verification-for-external-me/4292196

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/roadmap?msockid=1e6bf65e64c46bbd2af2e58965c36a50&filters=&searchterms=418125

SharePoint Syntex Document Translation

Microsoft has a feature that translates documents in SharePoint Online called “Document Translation”.  Today, Document Translation is under the SharePoint Syntex brand, and at some point in the future this will move under a new brand called SharePoint Premium (announcement Nov 2023).  This was supposed to happen in CY24, but this has not occurred yet so for the time being will continue to refer to SharePoint Syntex brand.  

Microsoft Syntex offers a robust document translation service that allows you to create translated copies of files while preserving their original format and structure.  Some of the key features are:

• Supported Files: It can translate .csv, .docx, .html, .markdown, .pdf, .pptx, .txt, and .xlsx. For legacy file types like .doc, .rtf, .xls, .ods, .ppt, and .odp, the translated copy is created in the modern equivalent format.
• Language and Dialects: Will translate tons of languages, see references below.
• File Size Limits: Maximum of 40 MB file.
• SharePoint and OneDrive Integration: You can translate files directly in document libraries.  It is literally as simple as finding a document, going to the menu bar, and then selecting what language you want the file translated to.
• Automation: It possible to create rules that will automatically translate a document when a file is added or when a value changes in a column.
• Video: Syntex also supports translating video transcripts and closed captioning files. 

Microsoft Syntex Document Translation Services is part of the new pay-as-you-go model.  With pay-as-you-go, you can use Syntex without any license commitment or upfront purchasing. Any user in your organization can use Syntex services and only pay if and when services are used.  Pay-as-you-go requires an Azure subscription.

References

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/syntex/translation-overview

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/syntex/syntex-overview

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/sharepoint_premium_blog/introducing-sharepoint-premium-%E2%80%93-the-future-of-ai-powered-content-management-and/3981076

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/ai-services/translator/language-support?source=recommendations#translation

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/syntex/syntex-licensing

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/syntex/translation

Microsoft 365 Backup New Features

Microsoft 365 Backup became Generally Available (GA) in July 2024.  If you are not familiar with M365 Backup, it is a solution designed to ensure your organization's data is always protected and easily recoverable.  Some of the key features are:

• Comprehensive Coverage: It backs up all or selected SharePoint sites, OneDrive accounts, and Exchange mailboxes.
• Fast Backup and Restore: It offers fast backup and restore times, ensuring your data can be recovered quickly in case of accidental or malicious deletion.
• Granular Restore Options: You can restore entire SharePoint sites, OneDrive accounts, or specific Exchange mailbox items.
• Business Continuity: It provides peace of mind by ensuring business continuity through reliable data protection and recovery.

Past obtaining this feature for business continuity, many customer leverage this solution as part of their security strategy to protect against cyber and ransomware attacks.

One of the appealing features of M365 Backup is that you avoid slow import and export processes.  M365 Backup is very quick offering 10 minute recovery points and recovery times on the order of hours.

In November 2024, a few new features 

• PowerShell Control: Perform operations through automation and reoccurring activities.
• Backup Admin Role: Specific to this feature to limit access to the feature.
• Dynamic Rule Based Backups: Previously, you can create backup policies based on distribution lists and security groups which were point in time based on when the snapshot was made.  With Dynamic backups, policies are applied to memberships as they change.
• Granular file level restore: This allows file level browsing the backups and restore files directly in SharePoint Online and OneDrive.  This enables you to do smaller restores.  Note, Exchange Online already supports restoring granular items.
• Enhanced version controls: Adopt the new enhanced version controls of SharePoint and OneDrive to optimize version lifecycle management.

References:

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/backup/backup-overview

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft_365_backup_blog/enhancing-business-continuity-with-microsoft-365-backup-and-microsoft-365-backup/4298783

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/backup/backup-faq

M365 Copilot and Microsoft Graph Updates

Microsoft Graph Connectors allow you to import unstructured business data into Microsoft Graph, enabling Microsoft 365 Copilot to provide results from both M365 and your business systems. This integration helps users interact with data using natural language for quicker and more informed decisions.

In December 2024, there were some new features introduced.

• Quick Setup experience: new streamlined process for configuration of connectors.
• Index Browser: new administrator experience allowing admins to quickly search for items in the index and review properties.
• Increased item index has been expanded to 50 million item per index per tenant without any extra cost.
• New Connectors: 7 new connectors have been added: GitHub, Google Drive, PostgreSQL, Salesforce Knowledge, Stack Overflow and WordPress.

References:

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/microsoft-graph-connectors--ignite-2024/4360934

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365-copilot/extensibility/overview-graph-connector

December 2024 M365 Copilot and Microsoft Teams

Here are some of the new capability releases for M365 Copilot and Microsoft Teams for the month of December 2024:

• M365 Copilot was released to Microsoft GCC cloud.
• Viva Learning and Copilot Academy 
• New templates and reports in Copilot Analytics to better understand employee readiness, adoption and impact which can be used along side of the Copilot Dashboard.
• Copilot on OneNote for Mac and iPad.  Leverage copilot to understand, summarize, rewrite or do further brainstorming.
• New Excel Copilot functions for “understanding” data.  For instance, leverage Copilot has Clean Data detectors to help find inconsistencies with data and provides recommendations.  Plus Copilot will recognize patterns and provide suggested formulas.
• Word Copilot can now read aloud responses in the chat pane.
• Word Copilot will allow users to ask questions about images by simply putting the image into the chat.  Copilot can then extract text, get a description of a chart, translate information or generate alt text.
• Intelligent recap in Teams is now available for meetings that started using the “Meet Now” function.  This allows ad-hoc meetings to have the same AI meeting experiences that a schedule meeting has.
• Teams Meetings now supports the “take control” feature in Teams web app.
• Webinar and Town Halls now support RTMP-In 708 captions are a closed captioning standard that provides enhanced captioning capabilities.

References

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/whats-new-in-microsoft-365-copilot--december-2024/4359815

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoftteamsblog/what%E2%80%99s-new-in-microsoft-teams--december-2024/4359658