A new generation: agentic AI and "Autopilots"
Most users know Copilot today as an assistant that creates content, summarizes information, or answers questions. Agentic AI, however, refers to systems that not only generate content but also actively work toward a goal: they analyze information, plan next steps, and support complex tasks across multiple applications, data sources, or coordination efforts.
Microsoft now clearly distinguishes between two new building blocks. Copilot Cowork is an agent within Microsoft 365 Copilot that performs multi-step information work. Microsoft Scout is the first representative of a completely new category that Microsoft calls “Autopilots”: permanently active agents with their own identities that operate in the background and continue to function even when the user’s attention is elsewhere.
Why this development is important
The introduction of Copilot Cowork and Microsoft Scout is more than just an extension of Microsoft 365 Copilot. It represents a fundamental change in how we interact with AI. While classic AI assistants primarily respond to requests, agentic systems increasingly take on tasks independently, coordinate work steps, and support complex decisions.
For companies, this addresses a central challenge in knowledge work: information is often scattered across emails, chats, documents, and specialized applications. Before decisions can be made, this information must be researched, consolidated, and evaluated. This effort consumes time and resources daily.
Agentic AI aims to accelerate this process. Instead of providing individual answers, systems such as Copilot Cowork and Microsoft Scout work toward a specific goal, connect data from different sources, and help structure tasks. This creates new opportunities for productivity, knowledge management, and decision-making.
For companies, the question is less about whether agentic AI will become relevant and more about what role it should play in their own workflows. Those who engage early with its possibilities and prerequisites can evaluate potential benefits strategically and prepare its use carefully.
Cowork and Scout: a direct comparison
Both solutions are agentic but start from different points. Cowork is the action layer within Microsoft 365 and operates in the cloud; Scout is the always-active agent on the device, accessing local files and the desktop. The following overview places both next to classical Microsoft 365 Copilot.
Compact summary
Copilot Cowork: the agent in Microsoft 365
Copilot Cowork is a feature within Microsoft 365 Copilot. Instead of just responding to individual requests, Cowork can independently plan tasks, consolidate data from various sources, and coordinate work steps across multiple applications. You describe the desired outcome, Cowork plans the necessary steps, and executes them – each action is submitted for approval beforehand so that control remains with humans.
Technically, Copilot Cowork works in the browser, Outlook, Teams, the Microsoft 365 Copilot desktop app for Windows and Mac, and the Microsoft 365 Copilot mobile apps. Microsoft uses multiple AI models to process tasks. Depending on the organization’s permissions, different models are available. Copilot Cowork can sort and send emails, create Word, Excel, PowerPoint files, and PDFs, schedule meetings, and write posts in Teams. Generated content can be reviewed, edited directly in the interface, saved to OneDrive, or reused. For companies, this means concrete benefits: less time for research and coordination, better decision-making through structured information, and more efficient knowledge management. Existing Microsoft 365 permissions and governance rules remain unchanged.
Microsoft Scout: the first "Autopilot" on the desktop
On June 2, 2026, Microsoft introduced Microsoft Scout, its first Autopilot agent. Scout is a desktop application for Windows 11 and macOS that launches after you log in with a work account. Unlike a chatbot, Scout does not wait for input but operates continuously in the background, observes things you’ve granted access to, and becomes active when needed.
Scout works across cloud, desktop, and web. It connects with Teams, Outlook, OneDrive, SharePoint, and the data that shapes your workday – chats, emails, calendars, and contacts. Interaction primarily happens in Teams; through the desktop app, Scout reaches the browser, local resources, and Model-Context-Protocol servers. It can read and edit local files, control a browser, and execute scripts.
A technical highlight: Scout is based on OpenClaw open-source technology and is not tied to a single model provider – early versions offer a choice of models from different providers. Through so-called configurable heartbeat checks, Scout periodically checks in the background for things such as approaching deadlines or incoming messages. Specifically, it can coordinate meetings across time zones, mark important appointments, generate preparation materials, identify pending deliveries, block time on the calendar, and flag risks, such as stalled decisions, early on.
Security is central: each agent operates under its own managed Entra identity – not an anonymous shared service account. Actions are attributable to known users. Sensitive steps may require human approval, and data protection policies from Microsoft Purview, such as confidentiality labels and data loss prevention, apply immediately before anything is sent or written. Scout does not bypass these controls but works within previously configured security mechanisms.
Differentiation of Power Automate and Copilot Studio Agents
Classic automation solutions such as Power Automate operate on a rule-based model: when a defined trigger occurs, a predefined process runs. Cowork and Scout, however, are context-based and support open, knowledge-based tasks, moving away from rigid workflows toward flexible knowledge work.
There is also a clear difference to Copilot Studio Agents. Studio Agents are intentionally designed and configured to automate processes or services and can be used both company-wide and externally. Cowork and Scout, on the other hand, are closer to individual employees: they support personal knowledge work and operate closely within the context of daily tasks.
Interaction with Dynamics 365
The agents become particularly interesting when knowledge work intersects with operational business processes. Cowork can already be connected to Dynamics 365 via suitable plugins – Microsoft mentions plugins for Dynamics 365 ERP, Customer Service, and Sales. This allows information from sales, service, or finance to be linked with emails, documents, and internal coordination. Prerequisites include a Microsoft 365 Copilot license, an activated plugin, and admin-configured Dataverse.
Use case example:
Copilot Cowork can consolidate open escalations from Outlook, Teams, SharePoint, and Dynamics 365 into a compact overview for service management and use this to create a management briefing to inform decision-making. This transforms AI support into a real lever in core business processes.
Get off to a structured start with agentic AI
Would you like to find out which use cases are meaningful for your company and which prerequisites are already met? That’s exactly what our AI Discovery Workshop is designed for. Together, we identify potential, check governance requirements, and develop a realistic pilot approach.
Contact us and start your first pilot.
A workday with agentic AI
For many knowledge workers, the workday starts similarly: a full calendar, numerous emails, and varying levels of information from meetings, chats, and documents. Agentic AI can support this with a structured overview of key topics – consolidating and prioritizing relevant information from emails, Teams chats, SharePoint documents, and current project statuses.
For an upcoming meeting, an automated briefing is created that includes summaries of recent coordination efforts, relevant documents, and an agenda proposal. During the day, after meetings, central content is summarized, to-dos are identified, optionally converted into follow-up actions, or email content is automatically incorporated into the steering committee report. While Cowork takes over these tasks on request, Scout can trigger them in the background – such as blocking time for an upcoming deliverable or flagging a stalled approval before it becomes a problem. The responsibility for decisions remains with humans.
Is your company ready?
The added value is particularly evident where data, processes, and governance are already well-defined. Many foundations are not new but gain significantly in importance with agentic AI.
Mini-checklist for getting started
- Microsoft 365 Copilot has been launched in the company
- Structured SharePoint and Teams environments are available
- Permissions are clearly defined
- A test group has been selected
- Governance policies for AI use are documented
Additionally for Scout: Frontier enrolment, Intune-managed devices, an opt-in, and a GitHub Copilot license to download the app.
Access and prerequisites
Copilot Cowork
Copilot Cowork is available worldwide for Microsoft 365 Copilot tenants since June 16, 2026. To get started, companies need an active Microsoft 365 Copilot license, an activated Cowork in the tenant, and usage-based billing (Copilot credits) enabled. Anthropic must also be activated in the tenant. Cowork runs in the browser, Outlook, Teams, the Microsoft 365 Copilot desktop app for Windows and Mac, and the mobile apps for iOS and Android. IT administrators can also control which roles see Cowork, which plugins and models are available, and how security, compliance, and billing rules apply. Microsoft Purview and existing Microsoft 365 policies continue to govern this.
Microsoft Scout
Scout is rolled out within the Frontier program – to a selected group of customers in private preview and Frontier organizations. Access requires Frontier enrolment, an Intune policy configuration, and an opt-in. Users with a GitHub Copilot license can then download and install the application. Microsoft provides a complete setup guide at learn.microsoft.com/microsoft-scout.
The Microsoft Frontier Program
Frontier is the channel through which Microsoft introduces experimental Copilot and agent features before they become generally available in customer tenants. Access is not freely available; it requires a Microsoft Account Manager, a Microsoft partner, or an invitation. The program is activated tenant-wide by an admin via opt-in.
Important: the Frontier program should not be confused with the paid Microsoft 365 E7 Frontier Suite. Despite the shared term “Frontier,” they are different – Frontier is early access, while E7 is a license package.
Conclusion
Copilot Cowork and Microsoft Scout represent the next development step in using AI within Microsoft 365. Instead of point-specific support or classic automation, AI becomes an active part of collaboration – Cowork as an agent within the cloud world of Microsoft 365, Scout as an always-active Autopilot on the desktop.
For companies, this means knowledge work is changing. Decisions can be made faster and more thoroughly, coordination becomes more efficient, and existing information is used more effectively. At the same time, new requirements arise for data structure, governance, and AI use – especially with an agent like Scout, which extends to the local computer. Scout is currently in experimental preview within Frontier; functionality and names may still change, so regular checks of Microsoft documentation are recommended. Those who start now not only build technical knowledge but also develop a sense of which use cases are meaningful.
Frequently Asked Questions About Microsoft Copilot Rollout
Both solutions belong to Microsoft’s new generation of agentic AI, but they take different approaches. Copilot Cowork works within Microsoft 365 and supports knowledge work by consolidating information, preparing tasks, and coordinating multi-step processes.
Microsoft Scout takes a step further: as a desktop Autopilot solution, it operates in the background, can include local resources, and proactively responds to events. While Cowork is primarily focused on collaboration within Microsoft 365, Scout extends this approach directly to the workplace itself.
Not both. Copilot Cowork has been generally available since June 2026 and can be used by companies with the appropriate Microsoft 365 Copilot licenses.
Microsoft Scout is currently in an early preview phase. Right now, access is through the Microsoft Frontier program and is limited to selected companies and test environments. Functionality, availability, and prerequisites may still change.
For companies, this means that while Copilot Cowork can already be evaluated and used productively, Scout currently mainly offers a glimpse into the next generation of agentic AI and the future development of Autopilot concepts by Microsoft.
To use Copilot Cowork, companies need a Microsoft 365 Copilot license. In addition, the relevant functionality must be activated in the tenant, and the organizational and technical prerequisites must be fulfilled.
Scout requires additional Frontier enrolment, an Intune configuration, an opt-in, and a GitHub Copilot license to download the app.
Yes, both execute tasks. However, sensitive actions usually require approval, and data protection and compliance policies apply immediately. Control remains with humans.
Copilot Cowork works with data from a company’s Microsoft 365 environment. This includes, among other things, emails and calendar data from Outlook, chats and messages from Teams, files and documents from SharePoint and OneDrive, as well as content from meetings and other corporate resources.
Depending on the relevant permissions and policies, Microsoft Scout can also include local files, browser contents, and additional resources on the end device. Which data may actually be used depends on the company’s existing permissions, security policies, and governance requirements.
Yes. Copilot Cowork can already be connected to Dynamics 365. Microsoft mentions integrations for Dynamics 365 ERP, Customer Service, and Sales. This allows data and workflows from Dynamics 365 to be linked with emails, documents, and other Microsoft 365 services.
For companies, this means that Copilot Cowork can not only support knowledge work in Microsoft 365 but also include operational business processes from Dynamics 365. Especially where collaboration and specialized processes converge, this creates a significantly larger benefit.
Microsoft Scout is especially suitable for tasks that require continuous attention or for consolidating information from different sources. These include, for example, monitoring deadlines and deliverables, preparing recurring research, identifying open tasks, or consolidating information from local files, browsers, and Microsoft 365.
Scout can help identify risks early on and proactively prepare work steps, especially when dealing with complex workflows.
Yes. Microsoft Scout is still part of the Microsoft Frontier program and is not yet generally available. Companies therefore require an appropriate Frontier permission as well as the technical prerequisites specified by Microsoft.
The Frontier program allows selected organizations to test new AI features early and gain experience with them before they become generally available.
