Microsoft Copilot’s Latest Update: A Closer Look

Microsoft Copilot: A Recap

For those of you who don't know or may need to refresh your memory, Microsoft Copilot is an application that stays true to its name – the software will act as your AI 'copilot' and will be readily available to guide you and advise you as you go about your working day.

The AI-powered productivity tool has a range of features, all of which can help users navigate everyday tasks. Here are just some of the most beneficial hallmarks of Copilot:

• It will help users to create various document drafts within Microsoft Word.
• The AI-powered built-in assistant will help users boss their Outlook inbox by providing coaching tips and suggestions on clarity and tone whilst summarising long email chains.
• Any Microsoft Teams user can call on Copilot in any of their chats. The AI can summarise up to 30 days of previous chat content and is capable of summarising discussion points and action items in real-time during meetings. 

There are many more features and capabilities that this tool can bring to your workday; therefore, if you'd like a more comprehensive run-through of what Microsoft Copilot has to offer, check out one of our latest blog posts: Everything You Need to Know About Microsoft 365 Copilot (netitude.co.uk).

Details of the Latest Updates

Microsoft Copilot was brought to market and made generally available for its enterprise customers on the first of November, 2023. These latest updates came after rigorous rounds of testing and the inclusion of 40% of the Fortune 100 Companies in their Early Access Programme in May 2023. The program was designed to iron out any potential hiccups, test the limitations and develop the product even further if necessary, depending on the feedback received.

Taking Away Small Business Limitations 

The latest round of changes is interesting, to say the least. Microsoft has decided to remove the prior limitations in place for small businesses by expanding the availability of their latest product to more commercial customers. Microsoft 365 Business Premium and Business Standard Customers can now purchase between 1 and 299 licenses for $30 (£23.56) per user per month.

This is a much more inclusive approach by Microsoft as they have removed the barriers in place previously by removing the 300-seat purchase minimum for commercial plans. This is a change that will be celebrated by SMEs (Small to medium-sized businesses) around the globe.

Rolling Out Microsoft Copilot Pro 

In a recent Microsoft blog, Yusuf Mehdi also announced the rollout of Microsoft Copilot Pro. Copilot Pro intends to go one step further in enhancing the seamlessness of your workday across all of your devices and applications. She describes it as "a new subscription that delivers the most advanced features and capabilities of Microsoft Copilot to individuals looking to supercharge their Copilot experience" - let's see if she can put her money where her mouth is.

The Pro version ups the ante by providing deeper integration with the Microsoft 365 suite and will give Copilot Pro users a range of exclusive features, such as access to the latest GPT (Generative Pretrained Transformer) models, such as GPT-4 Turbo (the latest generational model from Open AI) and custom Copilot GPT's - these can be tailored for specific use cases.

Copilot Pro will also give its users more chances (known as "boost credits") to use the "Image Creator from Designer" feature up to 100 times a day.

It's fair to say that Microsoft Copilot Pro definitely delivers on its goal to enhance the offering of the standard Microsoft Copilot tool, which can be described as more basic in comparison. If this expanded Copilot offering tempts business leaders and individuals alike, they'll have to bite the bullet and fork out the $20 (£15.71) subscription fee per user each month.

Weighing Up the Potential Benefits

I guess the question on everyone's lips right now is: how can these updates benefit me? Well, I suppose you'd have to look at your personal situation or job role and work out just how Microsoft Copilot can benefit you.

From a general perspective, we can take a look at Microsoft's Work Trend Index – a special report devised to look into 'What Can Copilot's Earliest Users Teach Us About Generative AI at Work?' Here are some of the findings which were stated:

• 70% of Copilot users said they were more productive. 
• 68% said it improved the quality of their work.
• Overall, users were 29% faster in a series of tasks (searching, writing, and summarising).
• Users were able to get caught up on a missed meeting nearly 4x faster.
• And perhaps the most notable statistic: 77% of users said once they used Copilot, they didn't want to give it up.

From my standpoint, I work for a company with around 30 employees; therefore, we existed beneath the threshold required to gain access to Microsoft Copilot. Now, our business can benefit from this AI-powered productivity tool in every aspect of the organisation.

We've just sat down as a management team and have identified our goals and objectives for the year, and I do not doubt that Microsoft Copilot and maybe even Microsoft Copilot Pro can elevate the Netitude brand to new heights.