Microsoft Copilot
Microsoft 365 Copilot, explained without the noise
Microsoft 365 Copilot is the AI assistant in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams that works with your own work data — since August 2026 in the renewed Microsoft Copilot app. We advise and implement — securely, inside your own tenant.
How it works
Four building blocks, one assistant
Copilot is not a standalone chatbot but an orchestration layer. This is the route of every prompt.
- 1
You ask a question
In Word, Teams or the Microsoft Copilot app — in plain language.
- 2
Copilot gathers context
Relevant emails and documents, only what you may access.
- 3
The language model works
Encrypted, inside the Microsoft service boundary.
- 4
Answer in your app
With citations, ready to edit.
Per app
One assistant, all your apps
No new tools to learn — Copilot sits where your team already works.
Word
First drafts of reports and proposals, or rewriting in a different tone.
Excel
Suggest formulas, spot trends and build charts — with Python for deeper analysis.
PowerPoint
Complete presentations from your own files, emails or meetings — in your organisation’s house style.
Outlook
Long email threads summarised and draft replies ready before you send.
Teams
Ask live in meetings, get minutes with action points and chat summaries.
SharePoint & OneDrive
Search your organisation knowledge in plain language, with citations on every answer.
Licences
Free Chat or full licence?
Microsoft Copilot Chat is included in every business Microsoft 365 plan, and since July 2026 it can also see your inbox and calendar in Outlook. The Microsoft 365 Copilot licence adds your full work context; agentic work such as Cowork is billed on top in Copilot Credits. We advise which mix fits which role.
| Capability | Copilot Chat (included) | Microsoft 365 Copilot (licence) |
|---|---|---|
| Secure AI chat with web knowledge | ✓ | ✓ |
| Enterprise data protection | ✓ | ✓ |
| File uploads, Copilot Pages and Notebooks | ✓ | ✓ |
| Copilot Chat in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook | ✓ | ✓ |
| Word, Excel and PowerPoint agents | ✓ | ✓ |
| Answers across your full work context: mail, documents, meetings and chats (Work IQ) | Partly: inbox and calendar in Outlook | ✓ |
| Researcher, Analyst and Copilot Search | — | ✓ |
| Copilot Analytics & adoption reporting | Basic | ✓ |
| Agentic work: Cowork, Code and Autopilot | — | Licence + usage in Copilot Credits |
We discuss pricing and the right licence mix in a personal conversation — get in touch. Read how usage in Copilot Credits works in Copilot Credits & cost management. Want your team to learn to work with Copilot first? That is possible via Copilotcursus.nl.
From explanation to execution
We are in the room with you
The theory above is one thing — your own tenant is another. Our consultants look inside your Microsoft 365 environment with you, pick the first use cases together with your team, and then build them themselves.
The result is not an advisory report gathering dust, but an implementation that fits the way you actually work.
The new Copilot
From assistant to colleague
Since September 2026 Microsoft has been expanding Copilot into a workspace for agentic work. Some of this is available now — some is still in preview.
Home
One starting point that brings Chat and Cowork together, with Word, Excel and PowerPoint files right inside Copilot. Rolling out through the Frontier programme.
Copilot Cowork
Delegate multi-step work: Cowork plans, searches your mail, meetings and files and delivers the result. Generally available, billed in Copilot Credits.
Copilot Code
Build dashboards and internal apps without writing code, running securely inside your tenant. Available now through the Frontier programme.
Autopilot
An agent with its own name and identity that keeps picking up tasks in Teams and Outlook. In private preview since late September 2026.
Security
Copilot only sees what you may see.
Security & compliance
Secure by design
The biggest risks sit in your own permission structure — exactly what we set up as consultants upfront.
Your data stays yours
Copilot works inside the Microsoft 365 service boundary. Your documents never train the AI models.
Permissions still apply
Copilot only sees what the signed-in user sees. Purview and Entra remain in force.
European safeguards
GDPR and the EU Data Boundary, with deliberate exceptions such as Anthropic models. Certified: ISO 27001, 27018 and 42001.
Built-in guardrails
Filters against harmful content and prompt injection — before the model acts on anything.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
The most asked questions about how it works, security and implementation.
How does Microsoft 365 Copilot work technically?
Copilot is an orchestration layer combining four things: language models from providers including OpenAI and, after opt-in, Anthropic, the Microsoft 365 apps, your work context through Microsoft Graph — Microsoft calls this Work IQ — and a semantic index. Your prompt is enriched with context from your own environment, then sent to the model and returned encrypted in the app.
Can Copilot see documents I have no access to?
No. Access is checked against your existing permissions on every query; the index never changes anything about them. The real risk is oversharing: documents shared too broadly. A good implementation therefore starts with a permissions and oversharing scan.
What do I need to get started?
A business Microsoft 365 plan already gives everyone Microsoft Copilot Chat. For your full work context you add the Microsoft 365 Copilot licence; for up to 300 users that can also be Copilot Business. Beyond that: permissions in order, MFA on and a pilot group with clear use cases.
Does Copilot work in English?
Yes, fully. Ask questions, write text and get summaries — including of documents and meetings in other languages.
Why does my colleague see Copilot and I do not?
Usually one of three: the licence has not propagated yet (up to 24 hours), your Office apps are behind on updates, or the "connected experiences" setting is off. If you use the web app, also check that your network allows copilot.cloud.microsoft. Exactly the details we sort out upfront during an implementation.
How quickly does Copilot know new documents?
Your mailbox and personal work set almost instantly. New SharePoint documents shared with two or more people daily; changes to already indexed documents immediately.
Is Microsoft 365 Copilot now called Microsoft Copilot?
Partly. Since August 2026 the app is called Microsoft Copilot and runs at copilot.cloud.microsoft; the old address redirects automatically. The licence is still called Microsoft 365 Copilot and your Office apps keep their names. If you see a green shield next to your account, you are working with your work account and enterprise data protection.
How is Microsoft Copilot billed under the new pricing structure?
In two layers. The user licence covers everyday work: Chat and Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams. Agentic work such as Cowork, Code, Autopilot and the heaviest models comes on top as usage in Copilot Credits, within limits your admin sets. Microsoft is phasing this in between October and December 2026; we discuss rates in a personal conversation.
Does my data stay in the Netherlands?
No, but it does stay in the EU. Dutch tenants fall under the EU Data Boundary, but the Netherlands is not one of the countries with in-country processing. Exceptions include web searches and Anthropic models, which are off by default in the EU. We record those choices with you, for example in the DPIA.
Want to talk through your situation?
In an advisory call we map out permissions, data quality and opportunities — and you get a concrete roadmap.