As businesses pivot towards AI to stay competitive, drive growth and foster innovation, Microsoft, at the forefront of this AI revolution, has introduced a few groundbreaking products: the Copilot tools that have stirred up quite the excitement lately.
With names like Copilot, Windows Copilot, Microsoft Copilot and Copilot for Microsoft 365 floating around, it’s no surprise that people are getting confused.
But these tools aren’t just names in a lineup, they represent a new era of work, each offering unique functionality designed to propel businesses forward. In this post we navigate the Copilot confusion and shed light on what sets each tool apart.
Deciphering each Copilot tool
From the versatile Microsoft Copilot to the Windows-specific variant, each tool brings its own capabilities to the diverse Microsoft Copilot ecosystem. Let’s go through the toolkit.
1. Microsoft Copilot (Bing Chat): the conversational guide
Formerly Bing Chat, Microsoft Copilot is a conversational guide, think Cortana mixed with ChatGPT. It revolves around providing public information, delivering quick responses through chat, and engaging in conversational prompts. For example: “can you rewrite this sentence to improve the grammar” or “how do I do X in Excel”. It’s free, and you can access it through a Chrome add-in or the Microsoft Edge sidebar by clicking the Copilot icon at the top right.
2. Copilot for Windows: tailored for PC mastery
Like the basic version of Microsoft Copilot, Copilot for Windows is free to all users. Microsoft began rolling it out through a complimentary Windows 11 update on 26 September 2023.
Recognising the intricacies of Windows settings and the need for a tool that optimises PC efficiency, Microsoft built Copilot for Windows to be an assistant that not only understands but enhances the Windows experience. It’s finely tuned to offer PC settings optimisation and assist with generative tasks. Businesses can leverage Windows Copilot to enhance PC efficiency, keeping an organised, distraction-free workspace. For example: “organise my Windows tabs” or “turn on dark mode”.
3. Copilot for Microsoft 365: elevating productivity across the suite
This is the real Copilot.
Integrated into the Office/Microsoft 365 tools, Copilot for Microsoft 365 offers tailored assistance within Teams, Word, Outlook, Excel and PowerPoint. Think of it as a team assistant suggesting real-time edits during collaborative editing, you can ask it to build slide shows, write Excel formulas, summarise Teams meetings, draft emails and more.
Unlike Microsoft Copilot, Copilot for Microsoft 365 has access to your corporate data from across your Microsoft environment. So you can’t just turn it on, first review your security settings and access/permissions, and confirm that the people using it can reach the data they need but not what they shouldn’t.
How to get started with Microsoft Copilot and Windows Copilot
Copilot for Microsoft 365 is an add-on licence for various Microsoft 365 business packages, now including Business Standard and Premium, not just Enterprise plans. It comes at an extra cost and isn’t part of your current subscription, so the impact on your licensing budget will vary based on your existing licences. Frontline workers on the M365 F3 (or F5) licence can add it too, but Copilot is limited to the web and mobile apps, not the desktop versions.
- If you have a personal Microsoft account, you get basic Microsoft Copilot for free, and can pay for Copilot Pro (£20), which adds Office app integration but not Teams, and doesn’t pull data from your other files, systems or apps.
- If you have a business Microsoft account, you get Microsoft Copilot and Windows Copilot, but need a Copilot for Microsoft 365 licence (£30) for full Office app integration. That works in Teams and grounds its answers on data from across your Microsoft 365 environment via the Microsoft Graph.
Windows Copilot, meanwhile, is currently in preview, with ongoing experimentation driven by user feedback. The preview ships as part of the latest Windows 11 update across select global markets, starting with North America and specific regions in Asia and South America, with plans to expand further over time.
Get in touch for a free IT consultation
Bringing Microsoft’s Copilot tools into your business can be both exciting and transformative. At Sereno we’re your dedicated IT provider, ready to guide you through it with expertise and personalised support.
Have questions or need guidance on how to kickstart your journey with Copilot? Sereno offers a free IT consultation to address your queries and provide insights tailored to your business, strategic advice to help you maximise the benefits of these powerful tools.
Contact us today and unlock the full potential of Microsoft’s Copilot tools with Sereno by your side.
Written by
Sahaj Arrora
Part of the Sereno IT team helping growing UK businesses make confident, jargon-free technology decisions. Read more ai & productivity guidance in our AI & Productivity library.
