Microsoft’s new Copilot Actions use AI to automate repetitive tasks

At Microsoft’s Ignite conference today the software giant is introducing Copilot Actions, a new way for Microsoft 365 Copilot users to automate repetitive tasks. Microsoft is also adding AI agents to SharePoint, allowing PowerPoint to translate entire presentations and improving how Copilot works in Outlook to find the best time for meetings.

Copilot Actions, now in private preview, enable anyone to automate repetitive everyday tasks. That could include automating a summary of meeting actions from Teams meetings, generating weekly reports, or even automating meeting prep. Copilot Actions are designed to be something you set and forget, much like an AI-powered macro that goes off and does its thing based on some fill-in-the-blank prompts.

Microsoft is also working on improvements to Microsoft 365 Copilot across a variety of Office apps. PowerPoint users will be able to translate presentations early next year into one of 40 languages. PowerPoint’s Copilot Narrative Builder will also take cues from branded templates, speaker notes, and built-in transitions and animations to create a better first draft of a presentation. Copilot will also be able to use images from SharePoint to integrate into PowerPoint presentations.

Copilot in Excel will soon include a new start experience that suggests templates with headers, formulas, and visuals to get a spreadsheet created. Microsoft is also working on improving Copilot in Outlook so it can better schedule 1:1 meetings with colleagues at the best time and create a meeting agenda. This will be available for Copilot in Outlook users by the end of this month.

Microsoft has also been trying to sell businesses on the idea of ​​Copilot Agents in recent months, including agents for sales, service, and finance. Now, Microsoft is bringing AI agents to SharePoint so that you can summarize documents, ask questions about data across SharePoint files, and create custom agents that can handle AI responses about a specific SharePoint site or list of files.