Microsoft has just unveiled Copilot, an AI-powered assistant that will change the way users use Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook.
With Copilot, Microsoft offers an intelligent assistant that will change the way users use Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook. Users can now request the virtual assistant to perform tasks that will be done in seconds. The goal is to stimulate creativity and increase productivity so that everyone can focus on what’s important.
Copilot combines the power of large language models (LLMs) with your data in the Microsoft Graph, such as your calendar, emails, chats, documents, meetings, etc., as well as Microsoft 365 applications, to turn your words into the most powerful productivity tool on the planet.
Microsoft Copilot Features
This wizard will be able to produce long texts in Word or rewrite existing documents, design personalized presentations in PowerPoint in a few seconds, or create Excel formulas adapted to your needs.
And these are just a few examples! This assistant could become a staple in our offices in the future, and it’s clear that a new era of work is coming with the emergence of these kinds of artificial intelligence models.
Microsoft 365 Copilot will offer a multitude of features such as producing structured texts in Word from existing files, adapting texts to give them a professional tone, designing PowerPoint presentations from existing documents, creating professional data visualizations in Excel, summarizing long email exchanges in Outlook, writing response proposals in Outlook, summarizing the key points of a Teams meeting in real time, automating tasks or even creating chatbots in PowerPlatform.
How Copilot works
The company explained that it did not create Copilot by simply plugging OpenAI’s ChatGPT into Microsoft 365.
The technology uses the “Copilot system,” which combines Microsoft 365 applications with Microsoft Graph data, as well as GPT4 technology. For example if you ask a question in Word, the chatbot will first send the data to Microsoft Graph to find the context of the query, and then that data will then be sent to the ChatGPT language model before printing the response to users in the application.
Microsoft Copilot in Word
In Microsoft Word, Copilot will allow you to request and generate content. For example, you can request to generate content on a specific topic or based on the content of another document.
If you want to refine the content, you can ask the chatbot to write for you, and of course, you can edit and adapt the content to personalize it. While the word processing application already has a grammar and spell checker, the new Copilot will also be able to detect errors and make suggestions based on your preferences to improve the writing of the document.
Microsoft Copilot in Excel
In Excel, Copilot will help you better understand the information by allowing you to analyze and explore the data in the table. Just like Bing Chat, you will be able to ask virtually any question using natural human language and the chatbot will be smart enough to suggest formulas based on your queries, predict “what if” scenarios and find data correlations. In addition, you will be able to instantly create a SWOT analysis or a pivot table based on the data.
Microsoft Copilot in PowerPoint
In PowerPoint, the chatbot will help you create presentations on a specific topic. It will be able to convert a Word document into a presentation by adding images and adapting the text. Since the AI understands natural language, you can ask for things like inserting animations in a slide or in the whole presentation depending on the context of your request.
With Microsoft Copilot, Powerpoint presentations will be done in 3 times less time
Microsoft Copilot in Outlook
Within Outlook, Copilot will be able to produce emails automatically based on your request or the content of an existing email you want to reply to. You can adjust the tone of the message. In addition, Copilot will be able to summarize “long, complex email exchanges involving multiple people in order to understand not only what was said, but also the different points of view of each person and open questions that have not yet been answered.
When will it be available?
As of now, no specific date has been given as to when Copilot will be available to the general public, but Microsoft has said that Copilot will be rolled out to Microsoft 365 applications over the next few months, starting with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams, Power Platform and more.
