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What is Microsoft Copilot? The AI feature explained

You may have noticed Microsoft Copilot when using Bing or Microsoft Edge, or perhaps you’ve just bought a new Windows 11 computer and seen it listed as a feature on your desktop. 

Keep reading to find out what Microsoft Copilot is, how it works and where you can find it.

What is Microsoft Copilot?

Microsoft Copilot is Microsoft’s dedicated AI-powered companion, built to enhance user experience across Microsoft and Windows.

Predominately a chatbot that works similarly to OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Copilot can understand and process user prompts, and then subsequently provide users with relevant and accurate responses. 

For example, users can ask Copilot to generate text or perform specific tasks such as finding a music playlist. You can also interact using natural language, which Copilot will be able to understand.

Where can you find Microsoft Copilot?

Copilot is neatly integrated into Bing, Microsoft’s search engine. When you enter Bing’s search bars you’ll see a suggestion to direct your search term to Copilot instead. Similarly, Copilot is also built into the web browser, Microsoft Edge.

Copilot is also part of the Windows 11 operating system, allowing you to open a chat window directly from the desktop. As it’s built in, Copilot has access to the device’s system controls and documents and has the ability to open and change App settings too.

From November 2023, Microsoft 365’s product family of software also features Copilot, however it’s worth noting this isn’t currently available for casual users and is just reserved for paid Enterprise customers.

Copilot’s inclusion across Microsoft 365 is noteworthy as it means professionals can utilise AI easily in their work life, in programs such as Outlook, Word and Excel. Copilot can help professionals create documents, summarise emails and even create spreadsheet formulas based on simple prompts.

You can also find the Copilot app on Android and iOS too.

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