New M365 E7 Notes

By now, many of you have heard about the major announcements about the new M365 E7 offering.  There are a couple of my notes around all the new capabilities.

Work IQ

• A key announcement is Work IQ, an intelligence layer that helps M365 Copilot understand your working habits, collaborators, and shared content. Work IQ personalizes Copilot to fit your needs.
• Work IQ consists of three interconnected layers: data, context, and skills/tools.
• Its purpose is to enhance Copilot by working with any foundational model chosen by users, such as Open AI or Anthropic.
• Work IQ's foundation lies in secure access to both your structured and unstructured data through the M365 graph, along with any business data reached via Copilot Connectors outside of M365.
• The Context component grounds Copilot in M365 data, providing baseline understanding of your activities. It considers factors like your skills, ongoing projects, collaboration frequency, your network, critical tasks, and more. The Memory feature allows you to mark specific data for recall, while implicit memory uses your history to generate answers. Work IQ also assesses your activity throughout M365 to build context and maintains a business perspective on your role.
• Work IQ offers agentic skills, which are specialized instructions for tasks—such as scheduling meetings or finding notes—alongside tools that Copilot uses to carry out these tasks.
• Integrated across all Copilot applications and experiences, Work IQ enables Copilot to deliver contextual information tailored to your prompts. You can ask about your manager, projects, processes, and more, and receive responses relevant to your situation.

Copilot Cowork

• Anthropic (Claude Cowork) has now been integrated into M365 Copilot. Copilot Cowork enables advanced, long-running, multi-step workflows that extend beyond simple prompts and responses. Coupled with Work IQ, users can now delegate substantial tasks to Copilot, allowing for oversight of ongoing work.
• Cowork is capable of decomposing complex requests into actionable steps, reasoning across multiple tools and files, and completing assignments on behalf of the user.
• Cowork’s operations are transparent and observable; users can monitor progress, provide guidance, halt, or modify tasks as necessary throughout the workflow.

Agents in Chat

• Chat in Copilot serves as a starting point, enabling users to seamlessly create documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and more based on their interactions. There's no need for users to copy and paste or switch between different tools, ensuring a streamlined workflow and helping them accomplish tasks efficiently.
• Copilot simplifies building agents for everyday tasks using Agent Builder, while Microsoft Copilot Studio supports the development of more advanced business processes.

Multi-model Intelligence

• As noted previously, the launch of Wave 3 demonstrates ongoing commitment to Microsoft's vision of providing users with flexibility rather than limiting them to a single model. Claude is currently unavailable as a primary chat option for users, while OpenAI models remain accessible.

Agent 365

• A key feature introduced with M365 E7 is the Agent 365 solution.
• Customers should expect that agents will become widespread on all platforms, not just within Microsoft environments.
• Agent 365 serves as a centralized control plane for managing enterprise-level agents, allowing organizations to monitor, secure, and govern every agent throughout their operation.
• In essence, managing agents resembles managing users, utilizing familiar tools and strategies already in use by organizations today.

Why Microsoft Included Entra Suite in Microsoft 365 E7

• To enable AI agents to operate under Zero Trust: As AI moves from assistance to action, Microsoft needed a way to apply identity, access controls, and policy enforcement not just to users, but also to AI agents operating across the environment.
• To extend identity governance beyond humans to non‑human actors: Entra Suite allows organizations to apply lifecycle management, least‑privilege access, and conditional access to AI agents the same way they do for employees, apps, and services.
• To make large‑scale AI adoption auditable and defensible: Agent actions can be logged, monitored, and governed through Entra, Defender, and Purview—supporting compliance, investigations, and regulated industry requirements.
• To prevent “shadow AI” as agents proliferate across the business: Entra Suite provides centralized identity and access governance so agents created by different teams don’t operate outside security and policy boundaries.
• To complement Agent 365 with identity‑level enforcement: Agent 365 provides visibility and control over agents, while Entra Suite provides the identity foundation that determines who or what an agent is and what it is allowed to access.
• To move customers from AI experimentation to enterprise execution: Microsoft included Entra Suite to remove the need for additional identity add‑ons and give customers a single, trusted platform to deploy AI safely at scale.
• To align E7 with the “agentic enterprise” strategy: E7 is designed for a future where humans and AI agents work side‑by‑side; Entra Suite is what makes that model secure, governable, and enterprise‑ready.

What comes in E7?

• Think of the new E7 suite as the M365 AI suite.
• First, it brings in M365 Copilot Add-on which previously was an add-on SKU to either E3 or E5.
• Second, it brings in Agent 365 to assist organizations with their enterprise management of agents.
• Third, the Entra Suite add-on is part of the E7 suite.  Entra ID Suite was included in E7 primarily to make large‑scale, governed AI agents viable and defensible in enterprise.

References:

https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2026/03/09/introducing-the-first-frontier-suite-built-on-intelligence-trust/

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2025/12/04/advancing-microsoft-365-new-capabilities-and-pricing-update/

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/a-closer-look-at-work-iq/4499789

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2026/03/09/powering-frontier-transformation-with-copilot-and-agents/

M365 Copilot What's New for Jan and Feb 2026

I reviewed the recent updates for both January and February 2026. Below are several noteworthy developments that I observed.

January 2026 >> https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/what%E2%80%99s-new-in-microsoft-365-copilot--january-2026/4488916 

• Agent mode is now available in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, allowing users to edit and refine documents collaboratively with active assistance based on user prompts.
• The introduction of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint Agents streamlines file creation, enabling users to generate new documents with a single prompt through Copilot Chat.
• Voice chats in the Microsoft 365 Copilot application have been enhanced to reference user memory, delivering more personalized results.
• Outlook's interactive voice experience summarizes unread emails and provides hands-free actions such as drafting, deleting, archiving, pinning, and flagging messages.
• Implicit grounding for emails and text allows Copilot Chat to automatically incorporate open emails as contextual sources for prompts. When text within an email is highlighted, Copilot dynamically updates its context to focus solely on the selected text.
• Users are now able to perform common email triage actions in Outlook and the M365 Copilot App using natural language commands. This includes marking messages as read or unread, pinning, flagging, and archiving (e.g., "Flag all unread emails from my manager").
• Automatic replies can now be set up using natural language, enabling users to toggle replies on or off, specify date ranges, and draft response templates efficiently.
• Copilot Excel now supports locally stored workbooks that are not saved on the M365 platform.
• In PowerPoint's view-only mode, users can leverage Copilot to review presentations and pose questions about the content.
• Microsoft Purview integration within the M365 Admin Center enhances security management for M365 Copilot, offering features including oversharing risk assessment, DLP for Copilot policy, and a Copilot Overview screen with suggested administrative actions.
• A new overview and readiness report will soon be available in the M365 Admin Center. The redesigned Copilot overview page offers a centralized, comprehensive, and contextual dashboard for monitoring Copilot across the tenant.

February 2026 >> https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/what%E2%80%99s-new-in-microsoft-365-copilot--february-2026/4496489 

• In Copilot Chat, users can pick specific text from Copilot responses and then ask focused follow-up questions about that selection.
• Users have the option to base their Copilot prompts on SharePoint lists or sites by typing a slash “/” followed by the desired location's name.
• In Outlook, users can highlight message text and start a grounded discussion based on what they've highlighted.
• The Project Manager Agent is a new tool that helps users plan, organize, and manage projects with AI-assisted tracking. It will be available for public preview in March.
• Copilot Chat now works alongside Copilot Search, making it possible for users to review previous search results and interact with Copilot simultaneously.
• Teams meeting recaps will soon feature visual highlights with summaries; for example, key recap points may include an image of a slide or a screenshot from a screenshare as part of the notes.
• Customizable Teams meeting recap templates are being introduced, enabling users to personalize AI-generated notes according to their team's workflow. Users specify their preferences, and Copilot follows those instructions.
• New features in Copilot for Outlook allow it to suggest meeting times, and if no suitable options are found, Copilot expands its search and explains the recommendations.
• In Outlook, Copilot can schedule meetings directly from an email thread—simply select “Schedule with Copilot” and the process is handled automatically.
• OneDrive agents allow users to create an agent capable of understanding an entire document set and responding with answers based on that collective content.
• In Copilot Chat, Agent Recommendations offer proactive suggestions to users; for instance, if a specialized agent is available, it will be suggested.
• AI agents can collaborate to complete complex tasks by invoking one another as tools, allowing specialized agents to benefit from each other's expertise.
• The new Power User Report will be added to the Copilot Adoption dashboard, helping you understand how power users, regular users, and non-users are engaging with Copilot.

Copilot in Outlook Help to Manage Meeting Conflicts

This upcoming feature is set to enhance productivity. With M365 Copilot, users can leverage its ability to review Outlook calendar events and manage meeting conflicts efficiently. For example, if multiple recurring meetings are scheduled and it becomes necessary to prioritize a one-on-one session, Copilot can reschedule the individual meeting accordingly. To enable this functionality, simply select “If conflicts arise, let Copilot reschedule this event” in the Outlook meeting invitation and specify which days and times are suitable for rescheduling should a conflict occur.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365insiderblog/copilot-can-reschedule-conflicting-events-in-outlook/4471514

Microsoft Teams Premium Capabilities Available in other M365 Suites

Significant updates are being introduced to Microsoft Teams licensing. Several features previously exclusive to Microsoft Teams Premium will now be included in the core M365 suites, eliminating the need for the Teams Premium add-on.

Summary:

• All advanced Town Hall and Webinar capabilities will transition to the Teams Enterprise license. Holders of an M365 suite with Teams will have access to these enhancements, enabling events with up to 3,000 attendees (and a view-only experience for up to 10,000 attendees).
• Attendee pack add-on licenses are being launched, supporting town hall events from 5,000 to 100,000 participants.
• Microsoft Places, a tool designed to facilitate workplace coordination for end users, is now bundled within M365 suites.
• A new Teams Shared Space License is being introduced, offering expanded functionality for space management and analytics.

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoftteamsblog/licensing-updates-extend-access-to-advanced-capabilities-in-microsoft-teams-and-/4488312

New M365 Copilot Control Panel Capabilities

Microsoft Ignite introduced several new management features for the Copilot Control System. This tool helps administrators oversee M365 Copilot. Thanks to extensive feedback, numerous enhancements have been made.  I highly recommend reviewing this longer blog posting: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/new-capabilities-for-ai-admins-from-ignite-2025/4478906

A couple of quick highlights that caught my eye:

• New dedicated home page for Copilot admins
• New oversight section that focus on 1) security / governance, 2) management controls, 3) measuring adoption
• New Copilot readiness page providing recommendations actions
• Improved organizational messages
• Action Segments allows you to target users based on their activity with additional tips on how to use Copilot
• Email Delivery Channel
• New Agent 365 control plane to manage all agents created in Microsoft platforms (including open-source and third-party).  This includes an agent registry page, agent ownership reassignment, agent pinning management, agent enablement controls, and agent policies to manage the life-cycle of agents

 

 

M365 Copilot PowerPoint Explain This feature

M365 Copilot for PowerPoint now offers a useful new feature called Explainer. With this tool, you can highlight specific content on your slides and have M365 Copilot explain it to you. This is especially helpful if your slides include acronyms, complex information, or dense material lacking clear explanations. Copilot analyzes what you've selected and provides a relevant answer.

 

Reference: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365insiderblog/get-clarity-on-complex-presentations-with-explainer-in-powerpoint/4479559

M365 Copilot Enterprise Commitments Extended to Anthropic Models

Back in September 2025, Microsoft announces that Anthropic models would be available to both M365 Copilot and Copilot Studio.  It was initially configured to be off by default and customers had to turn it on.

This has now changed.  Anthropic models are now covered under the Microsoft enterprise grade compliance and data handling commitments.  Thus, Anthropic models are now available by default to customers moving forward.  Customers still can disable access to Anthropic models should they choose to.  Please review the following references.

References:

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/copilot/microsoft-365/enterprise-data-protection

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/copilot/microsoft-365/connect-to-ai-subprocessor

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