Feeling confused about Microsoft Copilot? Perhaps you’re a bit overwhelmed with all the information flying your way. Don’t panic! This simple summary makes everything as clear as day.
Microsoft Copilot is rapidly emerging as one of the most beneficial tech tools for businesses. Especially for those looking to work more productively and efficiently – which is practically every organisation, right? As such, there’s been a huge amount of interest in the software, with different online resources all cobbling together different information, opinions and advice, and throwing it in your direction. If you feel bombarded with Copilot messages and materials, we don’t blame you!
The problem with all this information coming thick and fast is that it can be difficult to take it all in. You often end up missing vital bits and pieces that could be really helpful. That’s why we’ve created this simple summary, offering a clear and concise overview of what Copilot is all about.
So let’s start at the very beginning…
What is Copilot?
Copilot is a piece of software developed by Microsoft that falls somewhere between being an advanced chatbot and an AI-powered digital assistant. Microsoft describes it as ‘your everyday AI companion’. On its own, it achieves much the same as other generative AI tools out there, answering questions, summarising information, creating text, and so on. What makes Copilot special is that it works alongside your Microsoft platform to personalise the experience, and achieve even more.
How does it work?
Copilot uses the Microsoft Prometheus model; a large language model (LLM) built on GPT-4. Large language models are pre-trained – and continue to be trained – on huge amounts of data, allowing them to ‘learn’ to a point where it feels like they’re truly able to understand requests. This gives the software an increased likelihood of being able to deliver relevant, useful responses to its users.
In addition to this, Copilot has access to the data stored within your own Microsoft environment. For example, it can ‘read’ emails, attend online meetings, scan spreadsheets, and more. By combining this unique business intelligence with LLM learning, Copilot is able to do more, supporting users not only in terms of idea generation and communication, but also in task handling and productivity.
What apps does it integrate with?
Currently, Copilot integrates seamlessly with the following Microsoft applications:
- Teams
- Outlook
- Word
- PowerPoint
- Excel
- OneNote
- Loop
- Whiteboard
What can it do?
In terms of what it can achieve, we like to think of Copilot as doing the job of an executive assistant. It doesn’t quite have the necessary skills or experience to do everything for you (unfortunately!), but it excels at supporting you to carry out your tasks in a way that’s as efficient as possible.
For example, Copilot can summarise points made in online meetings, and even note down who made those points. This makes it much easier to determine suitable courses of action than it is by having to go through recordings manually. It’s capable of filtering emails based on what’s important to you, and even summing up the content of those emails to give you a snapshot of what’s going on. It can help you schedule meetings based on real-time availability, brainstorm ideas for new products or services, edit text to change the tone for different audiences, or analyse large amounts of data.
How can it benefit businesses?
As there are so many different ways to use Copilot, there are a huge range of potential benefits:
- Enhanced efficiency
- Boosted productivity
- Improved communication
- Greater innovation & creativity
- Stronger digital security
Take a look at even more benefits of using Copilot
Can anyone use it? Absolutely! Although there are a few things to keep in mind to ensure you’re getting off on the right foot. Firstly, if you’re not already using Microsoft 365 as standard, you should start thinking about implementing the platform, training your users, and rolling out a strong implementation strategy.
Secondly, you’ll need to make sure your environment is ready for Copilot. As Copilot works by accessing your business data, ensuring this data is clean, up-to-date, and well-organised is key.
If you’re not sure you’re all set up for Copilot, our Copilot Readiness Service can help. Get in touch with us here at Reliable to find out more, and lay the groundwork for AI-powered success.