Photo: Microsoft.
One of Microsoft’s key announcements at Ignite 2024 was the addition of AI Agents to Microsoft 365.
According to Microsoft, an agent can be tailored with knowledge and expertise in a particular function to work alongside you or even on your behalf, responding to questions to more complicated or multistep assignments. The company believes that having agents handle routine needs can boost productivity for businesses, helping them save time and money.
SharePoint agents
SharePoint is an app getting autonomous agents. New agents in SharePoint will allow employees to use and create AI agents that use their SharePoint data, instantly getting real-time information and insights from the site. For example, new hires could use an agent to get guidance and onboarding materials to quickly get up to speed.
Every SharePoint site includes a ready-made agent tailored to the site's content, to assist users instantly. These agents provide immediate answers without the need for any customisation or extensive searching. But businesses can create a customised agent with a couple of clicks, based on specific files, folders, or sites that they choose to perform a specific project or task.
This new agent is generally available to start trying out today and is included in a Microsoft 365 Copilot licence. If your tenant is licenced for Microsoft Copilot Studio consumption billing, it will soon be available to users as a pay-as-you-go meter.
Teams agents
Starting today for Teams meetings, a new Facilitator agent will be included that works within Teams meetings and chats for more effective collaboration.
Starting today for Teams chat, the Facilitator creates and maintains an up-to-date summary of important information as the conversation happens, including key decisions, action items, and open questions to resolve. It will take real-time notes during your meetings, freeing you up to focus and engage deeply in meetings.
To access the public preview of the new Facilitator agent, customers are required to have a Microsoft 365 Copilot licence.
Also included in Teams is a new Interpreter agent. This agent will allow users to overcome language barriers by enabling real-time speech-to-speech interpretation in Teams meetings so they can speak and listen in the language of their choice, instantly.
The Interpreter will start with supporting nine languages including Chinese (Mandarin), English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil), and Spanish.
This new agent will be coming in public preview in early 2025 and will require a Microsoft 365 Copilot licence to access the preview.
Project management made easy
Photo: Microsoft.
A new Project Manager agent will automate project management by using Microsoft Planner. It can automatically create a new plan from scratch or use a pre-configured template by simply inputting the goals. Once entered into Planner, the agent oversees the entire project, including the assignment of tasks, progress tracking, reminders and notifications, and status reporting.
To access the public preview of the new Project Manager agent, customers are required to have a Microsoft 365 Copilot licence.
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