Copilot Just Got Eight Major Updates
We now see significant AI updates from major players in the field almost every week, with most new features quickly copied by competing companies as each strives to stay ahead. Now it’s time for Microsoft Copilot to catch up as it adds a lot of features that we’ve previously tested Microsoft or launched for other AI chatbots.
For example, Copilot now has Deep Research, which matches all the Deep Research tools elsewhere, and Copilot Search has been updated. Microsoft also unveiled its own AI-powered podcast generator, a tool that has been available on competing services for some time . There’s a lot to explore here, and each new feature is described below.
These updates have just been announced and will roll out over the “coming weeks and months,” depending on “platform, market and language.” At the time of writing, I haven’t had a chance to access or test any of them other than Copilot Search, but that’s all the information we have about them from Microsoft.
Co-pilot memory
The co-pilot can now remember more about you and personalize his responses accordingly. In exchange for a little less privacy, you get a little more convenience: the AI bot won’t suggest a mushroom recipe if it knows you hate mushrooms, for example, and can remember previous anniversary gifts for your partner so you don’t buy the same item twice.
This is consistent with what we’ve seen with Gemini and ChatGPT , and raises some questions about what we should really be sharing with these AIs. Microsoft says Copilot’s toolbar will include a full set of privacy options, and you’ll be able to “choose what types of information it remembers about you, or opt out of it entirely.”
Co-pilot actions
Copilot joins the ranks of AI agents—bots that can actually do tasks for you, like booking hotel rooms or buying gifts for friends (after all, nothing you care more about than having AI do the work of buying gifts). It’s called Copilot Actions, and launch partners include 1-800-Flowers.com, Booking.com, Expedia, Kayak, OpenTable, Priceline, Tripadvisor, Skyscanner, Viator and Vrbo.
In some ways, it’s a sophisticated overhaul of autofill: Tell Copilot where and when you want to stay, for example, and it will do the work of filling out all the forms with that information (as well as your address and payment information) on the hotel’s website. As with other AI agents such as Opera Browseroperator , it can be very useful, but at the same time it can go wrong.
Co-pilot’s vision
Copilot Vision isn’t really new: it debuted online last year , but it’s now available in apps for Windows, Android, and iOS. This means you’ll be able to point your device’s camera at something and let the co-pilot identify it or answer questions about it – so the AI is essentially seeing the world around you at the same time as you.
Of course, AI tools have long been able to identify the content of images and photographs, but Copilot Vision adds real-time processing and interpretation. Copilot for Windows will be able to perform the same analysis of everything on your computer screen, and even interact with files and applications if necessary.
Co-pilot’s pages
Copilot Canvas is a bit like ChatGPT Canvas combined with ChatGPT Projects or something like a Notion app , giving you a space to organize disparate thoughts and notes in one central hub. It’s useful for creating content, exploring ideas, and launching research projects.
It’s also not something entirely new: it was previously available to business customers who signed up for Microsoft 365 Copilot, where it can be used as a way to collaborate with other people, like a giant Google Docs file with added artificial intelligence. It is now rolling out and individuals can explore it too.
Copilot Podcasts
You may have already come across AI podcasts that can be created using Gemini or Google’s NotebookLM, and now Copilot can do the same: you can either choose one of Copilot’s suggestions based on your interests and what you’ve been chatting about, or provide it with specific documents and websites for content suggestions.
Podcasts can be interacted with while they’re playing, Microsoft says, giving you another way to explore topics beyond just text messaging. This is one of the smartest tricks AI chatbots have pulled off so far, so it’s no surprise that Copilot has joined them with its own version.
Deep Research co-pilot
Microsoft apparently saw ChatGPT Deep Research , Perplexity Deep Research , and Gemini Deep Research and decided that this name was as good as any other since it had its own matching function inside Copilot. As with competitors’ offerings, the idea is that you give Copilot a topic to research and it goes off and searches the web for relevant articles and resources.
All the information found will then be compiled into a carefully formatted report at the end, much like a real person would do it. Microsoft says queries run with Deep Research enabled will take three to six minutes to complete; unless you use Copilot Pro, you will be limited to five Deep Research queries per month.
Co-pilot: shopping
If you’ve ever felt like your online shopping could use some help from artificial intelligence, you’re in luck: Copilot has added some additional improvements to its ability to search the web for the best deals. You can now have the chatbot explore the details of items and compare them to each other (e.g. Pixel 9a and iPhone 16e ) in more detail.
Microsoft is also going to start adding direct links to buy products on Copilot, as well as the ability to track prices as they rise and fall – so you might get an alert from the AI assistant that the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is now cheaper than ever. And that’s what Copilot now does better than its AI competitors.
Search for a co-pilot
Copilot and Bing have gone a long way back, but Microsoft is now taking Google AI reviews and ChatGPT search more directly, with a more well-known and widely available search offering: Copilot Search will provide you with “reasonably selected information” with the goal of avoiding “potentially misleading information” as much as possible.
This is something that is currently available worldwide, so I might as well test it out. As with Google’s and ChatGPT’s offerings, the information is neatly laid out, with small boxes for citations and sources scattered around in case you want to check what the person (or AI?) is writing online where the answers were taken from.
Copilot Search correctly identified REM’s first album for me (mostly regurgitating Wikipedia – thanks, people who contributed) and correctly explained how DNA works – although it was interesting that for this album it cited a “guest author” on DailyNewsHungary , as well as on Healthline . More work on sources may be needed.