Copilot Weekly21 to 28 August 2026

Edit with Copilot in Excel can now execute Python code for advanced analysis, simulations, visualizations, and data transformation, with results written directly into the workbook. Existing security and execution controls apply. [Windows, Mac, Web].

Sonnet 5 is now available in the Copilot models menu in Word and is set as the default for higher-reasoning tasks. [Web].

Attendees in PowerPoint Live meetings can select slide text and get Copilot explanations in a side pane, processed within the meeting environment. Roadmap ID 557256. [Windows].

Copilot Cowork integrates OpenAI's ChatGPT Images 2.0 model for image generation and editing inside the app. [Android, Windows, iOS, Mac, Web].

Users can reference an email (by subject, sender, or date/time frame) when prompting Copilot to create a presentation, and Copilot incorporates the email content into slides. Roadmap ID 555888. [Windows].

Clicking an email reference or source in a full-app Copilot experience opens the email alongside Copilot Chat instead of requiring a separate Outlook window. [Windows, Mac, Web].

Hybrid Azure AD joined devices can now receive Organizational Messages, previously limited to fully Azure AD joined or on-premises AD joined devices. Roadmap ID 503564. [Web].

Users can steer, refine, and edit pages with natural-language commands (for example, 'Shorten this page') and Copilot can auto-create pages from chat prompts on mobile. [Android, iOS].

Copilot chat in classic Outlook for Windows can find meeting times, book rooms, draft agendas and send invites, from chat or the Schedule with Copilot button. It requires a Microsoft 365 Copilot license and is rolling out in phases. Roadmap ID 542185.

Refreshed design for the Microsoft 365 Copilot app: updated chat home screen, streamlined chat response layout, and redesigned navigation pane. Roadmap ID 561488. [Windows, Mac, Web]. (Now generally available per the 25 August release notes.)

Web and work chats are merged into one interface; a Work IQ button (top left, on by default) toggles access to work data without leaving the chat. [Windows, Web].

The release notes describe a streamlined, more cohesive UX for opening items and navigating Copilot Notebooks, on the web. The entry gives no further detail. Roadmap ID 516042. [Web].

Copilot Dashboard gains intelligent summaries that highlight adoption trends, with suggested prompts for exploring the underlying drivers. (Status change: in development -> rolling out.)

Copilot Notebook, an AI-powered workspace for a project or topic built on reference materials, is coming to OneNote on Mac. (Status change: in development -> rolling out.)

Copilot Chat now interprets and grounds responses using images embedded in Word documents (.docx), PowerPoint presentations (.pptx) and PDFs, so charts, diagrams and screenshots inform an answer rather than only the surrounding text.

A new Work IQ REST endpoint serves as a unified entry point for invoking agents and workflows, replacing the legacy Copilot Chat endpoints.

When adding the Researcher agent to a prompt, users can choose from supported Researcher models and modes directly in Copilot Chat. [Windows, Web].

Newly created declarative agents can now ground answers in scanned PDFs and image-based documents referenced from SharePoint, a class of enterprise content that was previously hard to use in agent scenarios.

Microsoft's entry says Agent Mode in PowerPoint will be able to reference files saved in SharePoint libraries and OneDrive folders when it builds a presentation. One feature published as three platform entries, Web, Desktop and Mac, all updated 21 August. The entry's stated target, June CY2026, is two months past.

Copilot Studio will let makers share agents built in the new GitHub Copilot harness with other makers, granting Agent Viewer (view analytics and evaluations only) or Editor (view, edit, configure, share, publish) access, with the matching security roles assigned automatically.

Makers will be able to configure the connectors an agent needs through an in-chat sign-in instead of a full settings experience.

The Microsoft 365 admin center's usage report for Microsoft 365 Copilot is now available in GCC High and DoD. It covers total enabled and active users, usage broken out per Microsoft 365 app, and user-level activity insights, anonymized by default. (Status change: in development -> generally available.)

A new admin control in the People Skills settings lets administrators permanently remove their organization's People Skills data from the tenant. The control deletes the entire skills library along with all users' confirmed, inferred and imported skills data, so an organization can offboard from People Skills completely. (Status change: rolling out -> generally available.)

Administrators will be able to configure retention for Microsoft 365 Copilot memory, preserving historical versions of memory items for security, compliance and investigation scenarios. Copilot memory covers saved memories and details inferred from chat history.

Microsoft 365 Organizational Data Services is introducing a new data quality report that helps administrators assess the coverage and health of people data used across Microsoft 365 experiences.

Microsoft has decided not to move forward with proactive push notifications in the Microsoft 365 Copilot mobile app. The entry described notifications for workflows like 'Your Day at a Glance' and 'Items waiting for you' that would open the matching Copilot response, drawing on Copilot Memory. (Status change: in development -> cancelled.)

Microsoft's entry says Copilot Notebooks will let users add Power BI reports as references alongside files, so summaries, presentations and briefs generated in a notebook can draw on the report's data.