Microsoft Copilot merged Chat and Cowork into one Home screen. A shared navigation pane now groups Plugins, Automations, Workspaces, and Projects. Projects keep related chats, tasks, and files together for ongoing work. Autopilot is a new always-on agent that works without constant direction. Autopilot has its own account, mailbox, and files. Access controls and approvals govern Autopilot’s actions. Skills are now available in Copilot Chat as well as Cowork. Users can create skills in natural language. Role-based plugins cover Sales, Service, Education, Legal, and Finance. Cowork can now read and update OneNote notebooks. Cowork can view, create, and update Planner tasks. Cowork has a task catalog for common scenarios. Cowork can reference past Copilot Chat conversations.
What changed
Chat and Cowork were separate. Notebooks were individual. Skills were only in Cowork. Workspaces did not support direct file editing.
What it unlocks
Teams can now keep context, tasks, and files together in Projects and Workspaces. Autopilot can run tasks without manual prompts. Cowork can reference past chats and tasks. Workspaces allow live collaboration on Office files.
- October 2026 rollout to Frontier
- November 2026 worldwide rollout
- January 2027 worldwide rollout for Workspace file editing
What you need to act on it
- Microsoft 365 subscription
- Frontier access for some features until November/January
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