Smarter AI Workflows in Microsoft 365 Copilot has been announced on the roadmap: Tools, Source Control, and Agents

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Tool Selection in Copilot Chat: Making AI Features More Discoverable One of the most helpful updates in my opinion, is the introduction of the new “Tools” button in Copilot Chat. Users will soon see this button directly in the chat prompt box, offering quick access to a curated set of Copilot features such as Researcher, Analyst, Pages, and image generation.  This will hopefully help users with an easier path to the different tools at their disposal. The feature is turned on by default, with no admin configuration required. This feature is associated with Roadmap ID 497298 , and is expected to roll out in the last weeks of August. Source Control in Copilot Chat: Scoped Responses for Greater Relevance Another user-friendly enhancement coming up, is the ability to scope Copilot Chat responses to specific content sources. This feature will allow users to define exactly which documents, folders, or repositories Copilot should reference when generating responses. It’s a subtle but power...

Copilot: Self-Service Purchase coming soon

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According to the message center Microsoft will roll out the new license request feature and self-service purchase option for Microsoft 365 Copilot by the end of March. These features will be available to users with various Microsoft 365 plans, including E1, E3, E5, and standalone products. Both features will be integrated within Microsoft 365 apps, such as Copilot Chat.

The License Request feature I find quite beneficial, as it empowers end-users to justify their usage and request access. At least as long as the organization is already rolling out Copilot to their employees. However, the Self-Service Purchase option may raise concerns for organizations that are not yet prepared to deploy Copilot. It is advisable for all organizations to review their self-purchase settings and make decisions to allow or deny access based on their readiness state.

License Request: This feature allows users to request a Microsoft 365 Copilot license directly from their admin. It helps efficiently assign unused licenses or purchase additional ones based on user requests. Global admins, license admins, and user admins can manage these requests seamlessly in the Microsoft 365 admin center, with options for standard or custom messaging.

Self-Service Purchase: Users can purchase Microsoft 365 Copilot licenses directly with their credit cards. If your organization has previously disabled self-service purchase for Microsoft 365 Copilot, those settings will be honored. To check the org status, sign into the Microsoft 365 admin center as a global admin, go to "Settings" > "Org settings" > "Self-service trials and purchases". From here you select the product you want to control.