Microsoft Introduces Two New AI Agents to Enhance Microsoft 365 Copilot
Millions of working professionals rely on the Microsoft 365 suite of applications for their daily workflows. To speed up some of these everyday business processes, the company is now adding two new AI agents to its Microsoft 365 Copilot offering.
Researcher
The Researcher agent functions similarly to OpenAI’s and Google’s Deep Research features, sifting through robust amounts of information from the web and outputting that information into a neat report with sources. Microsoft’s Research Agent is powered by OpenAI’s Deep Research model in combination with Microsoft 365 Copilot’s "advanced orchestration and deep search capabilities."
As a result, Microsoft’s version can go one step further from existing research agents, also pulling context from your work data, such as your emails, meetings, files, chats, and more. When combined with all of the information available on the web, it is able to create really personalized and rich reports. For example, Microsoft says Researcher can put together a comprehensive quarterly report for a client that combines information found across your apps as well as external news. The Researcher agent can also pull in data from third-party sources, such as ServiceNow and Salesforce, to better inform its outputs.
Analyst
The Analyst agent was built on OpenAI’s o3-mini reasoning model to provide users with comprehensive insights from raw data in minutes, according to Microsoft. Meant to act as a skilled data scientist, it uses chain-of-thought reasoning, another term for step-by-step processing, to work through complex queries. Users can watch the code running in real-time to learn from its processes and double-check the process.
Availability
Both the Researcher and Analyst agents will start rolling out to customers with a Microsoft 365 Copilot license in April. The rollout will be part of a new Frontier program that lets customers experience early Copilot innovations while they’re still being developed.
Conclusion
The introduction of the Researcher and Analyst agents is a significant step forward in the development of AI-powered productivity tools. These agents will enable users to streamline their workflows, gain deeper insights, and make more informed decisions. With their ability to combine internal and external data, these agents will be a game-changer for professionals relying on Microsoft 365.
FAQs
- What are the Researcher and Analyst agents?
- The Researcher agent is an AI-powered research tool that can pull together relevant information from the web and your work data to create personalized reports. The Analyst agent is an AI-powered data analysis tool that can provide users with comprehensive insights from raw data.
- How do the Researcher and Analyst agents work?
- The Researcher agent uses OpenAI’s Deep Research model and Microsoft 365 Copilot’s advanced search capabilities to pull together relevant information. The Analyst agent uses OpenAI’s o3-mini reasoning model to provide users with insights from raw data.
- When will the Researcher and Analyst agents be available?
- The Researcher and Analyst agents will be available to customers with a Microsoft 365 Copilot license in April as part of the new Frontier program.
