Microsoft Highlights New Features in Copilot for Microsoft 365

This month, Copilot for Microsoft 365 is getting several notable improvements across the core desktop apps, the web, and the Copilot mobile app.

“Every month, we highlight new features and enhancements for Copilot for Microsoft 365, so you can stay up to date with Copilot features that help you be more productive and efficient in the apps you use every day,” Microsoft’s TJ Devine writes in the announcement post. “This month, we’re excited to share information about extended language support in Copilot, features to help streamline data in Copilot in Excel, more efficient search and document creation with Copilot in Word, new training in Copilot Academy, and so much more.”

This is the third month in which Microsoft has provided this type of update. The first two were February and March, respectively.

Here’s what’s new this month:

Copilot grounded chat in Outlook. In May, Microsoft Graph-grounded chat is coming to the Copilot app in classic Outlook, new Outlook for Windows, and Outlook the web. In other words, you can limit Copilot’s working set to work data like chats, emails, and files. You can learn more about this feature on the Microsoft Support website.

Copilot grounded to local data. Copilot for Microsoft 365 users can already ground their data in content stored in OneDrive (for Business) and SharePoint, but in May they will be able to do so using locally stored files, too.

Improved efficiency in Word. Copilot for Word is getting several improvements. It can answer questions using Graph-grounded data, tune specific document sections during rewrites, automatically apply sensitivity labels to new drafts when it references files with those labels, and summarize selected text only. Beginning in May, you’ll be able to copy and paste a link to a supported file as a reference into Draft with Copilot instead of searching for it in the file reference menu.

Multiple formula column generation in Excel. Copilot in Excel can now return two formula columns simultaneously from a single prompt. ” For instance, you can extract both the first name and last name from a single prompt, neatly separating the information into distinct columns,” Microsoft explains. “Additionally, now you can use Copilot to create complex formula columns that span across multiple tables, utilizing functions like XLOOKUP and SUMIF.”

Secure Copilot web chat in the Copilot mobile app. Commercial users with eligible licenses will automatically get commercial data protection when they sign in to the Copilot mobile app using a work account and access web chat.

Notebook in Copilot. The new Notebook feature lets you create longer prompts that you can refine and iterate on over time, and it’s particularly well-suited to tasks like generating code or developing a piece of writing. Notebook is available in Copilot on the web and in Bing.

App Assure. Starting immediately, Microsoft’s App Assure compatibility program now supports Copilot for Microsoft 365 customers moving to a monthly update channel, at no additional cost. “Companies that move to a monthly update channel get the latest features and custom rollout waves,” Microsoft says. “In addition, monthly updates provide a secure experience that minimizes incidents and disruptions, offer better diagnostics for supportability, and minimize helpdesk claims.”

More language support. As we wrote yesterday, Copilot in Microsoft 365 now supports 16 additional languages.

Manage Copilot availability in Teams meetings. Admins can now manage Copilot availability in the Teams admin center. It can be configured to be on by default, only during the meeting, or during and after the meeting.