From multi-model improvements, agents in chat, and a new E7 pricing tier, we take a look at the finer points of Microsoft’s latest Copilot announcement.
Copilot Cowork
Rather than the simple question-and-answer interactions most AI users will be familiar with, Copilot Cowork breaks your request into a plan of multiple tasks and sets to work on completing them, all with a grounding on your business data. And if you realise you’ve missed something from your request, you can add additional guidance while Cowork is processing, meaning you don’t have to wait for a response that you know will be incomplete without your extra information.
Working closely with Anthropic, Microsoft have integrated the technology behind Claude Cowork into Microsoft 365 Copilot. This multi-model advantage makes Copilot different; your work is not limited by one brand of models. Copilot brings together the best innovations from across the industry and chooses the right model for the task.
For more information on Copilot Cowork, click here to read Microsoft’s separate announcement.
Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook
Many existing AI tools have a separation between the user’s request and their actual working environment, leading to a disjointed working experience and sprawling document generation. With this latest wave of enhancements, Copilot will now work alongside you in your Microsoft 365 applications, using the power of Work IQ. This means that:
- Word documents and PowerPoint presentations are generated with consistent, on-brand formatting and follow your organisation’s standard layouts.
- Only relevant information is included, based on your meeting, chat and relationship data.
- Users are not taken away from the apps they are using day-to-day – everything happens seamlessly from wherever they are.
Initially, this functionality was referred to as Agent Mode. However, because that implied a separate level of functionality when everything actually lives in one unified experience, Microsoft has since dropped the term.
Agents in Chat
With the increasing usage of conversational AI models, many people have become accustomed to starting a new idea in an AI-powered chat before even opening a Microsoft 365 app, and for those users, this is where built-in Agents come in. By utilising Microsoft’s Excel, Word, PowerPoint and Outlook’s Agents from within a Copilot chat, data can easily be combined from sources such as Dynamics 365 to create new documents and other content with ease.
Should a user require specific, controlled functionality, custom Agents can be built within the Agent Builder, directly from the Copilot chat experience, perfect for simpler projects. However, if more complex functionality is required, such as actions that integrate with external services, then Copilot Studio provides the necessary tools to build detailed Agents.
For more information on this functionality, we have a separate post: Microsoft announce tighter Copilot and Business App integration.
Agent 365
As more and more business users adopt AI Agents as part of everyday work, the challenges faced by system administrators increase. While IT departments will want to encourage the usage of these agents, they also need the tools to monitor them and ensure that data security is not being compromised. This is where Agent 365 comes in.
Available from May 1st, 2026, Agent 365 will become the central hub for Agent management. It will give IT and security teams a single location to monitor and secure all agents across an organisation. This will include:
- App Registry – a complete view of all agents in your organisation, including Agents built with Microsoft AI platforms, Agents from Microsoft partners, and any agents you register yourself.
- Agents Map – Visualise how your agents sit across the organisation, connect with other Agents, and perform over time to simplify monitoring and resolve issues quickly.
- Agent Analytics – Track the performance, speed, quality, business impact, and ROI of Agents in order to make informed decisions.
Agent 365 will be priced at $15 per user, per month (UK pricing has yet to be announced).
Microsoft 365 E7 – The Frontier Suite
This new pricing tier provides a user with comprehensive access to Microsoft’s business and AI applications, as demonstrated in the following table:
Microsoft 365 E7 will be available for purchase on May 1 at a retail price of $99 per user per month (UK pricing will be announced in due course), and includes Microsoft 365 Copilot, Agent 365, Microsoft Entra Suite, and Microsoft 365 E5 with advanced Defender, Entra, Intune, and Purview security capabilities.
Summary
It’s clear that Microsoft are not resting on their laurels with their AI technologies and are keen to infuse it into users’ workflows as assistive tools rather than as a disruption to existing processes. As more details emerge on Agent 365, Cowork and relevant UK pricing, we will update this website accordingly. If you are an existing Strategy 365 client and wish to discuss the contents of the announcement with one of our experts, feel free to get in touch.
Relevant links:
- Microsoft’s original announcement
- Copilot Cowork
- Copilot Agent Builder
- Agent 365
- Microsoft’s E7 blog post