New Year, New Momentum: Here are three Copilot updates to get you started into 2026

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It's a new year, so I thought I'd start the year by mentioning three features already released, or soon going to be released. One of the features improves the workflow of sharing files with comments, the other improves the application specific Copilot, and the last feature makes it easer to find the nest available timeslot for a 1:1 meeting. As with all of my other posts, timelines can shift, and the timelines in this post is as written in the Message Center at the time of posting. AI-Summary experience when sharing files. With this new feature, copilot intent to help users share files with clearer context in just a few steps. Users will get the capability to generate a concise summary of a file and include it when sharing from the File Explorer share dialog or the OneDrive activity center. This will make it easier to share the context of a file and giving the receiver a faster understanding of what a document or file contains before they open it. General Availability announced...

Two new updates to Microsoft 365 Copilot for Word: Smarter Creation and Researcher agent

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What’s New in Microsoft 365 Copilot for Word

Microsoft continues to evolve its Copilot capabilities in Word, bringing powerful new features that enhance productivity and streamline workflows. Two newly announced updates are rolling out this fall: First out of the gate is the integration of the Researcher Agent, allowing great content generation within Word itself. The second update is bringing more of the search and creation capabilities we have in Chat directly into Word.

These updates represent a meaningful step toward closing the functionality gap between Copilot in Word and Copilot Chat. For me, this is a most welcomed improvement, making it easier for end users to get the results they want even faster, with less friction and more flexibility.

Deep Research with the New Researcher Agent in Word

Not too long ago, Microsoft introduced the Researcher agent in Copilot Chat, but moving and editing that content required copy/paste and jumping between applications. With this coming update, users get a new AI-powered tool embedded in Word that helps them conduct complex, multi-step research using both work and web data. This agent combines Open AI’s deep research model with Copilot’s orchestration and search capabilities.

Rollout: is estimated to begin in mid- August, and should be complete by the end of September 2025. The feature will be available in 37 languages across Word on Windows, Mac, and the web.

Compliance and data considerations: The Researcher agent may access and process existing customer data (e.g., documents, emails) to generate responses. Depending on tenant configuration, it may also store new data.

Conversational Content Creation with Copilot in Word

Microsoft are bringing some (for me, long awaited) enhancements to Copilot in Word, allowing users to interact with Copilot in a more natural, chat-based format. The roll-out that is planned to begin in September 2025 and be completed by the end of October (Roadmap ID 499428) , will enable licensed users to:
  • Draft new documents or sections using conversational prompts.
  • Reorganize content into formats like FAQs.
  • Rewrite or update existing sections with ease.
What are the changes, and why it matters:
As someone who frequently works with teams on documentation and internal communications, I have seen limitations with the current implementation of Copilot in Word. Forcing me to jump between multiple applications in order to gather information, transform it and the format it in Word. This new ability to iterate on content directly through chat will reduce that friction and speed up productivity even more.

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