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  "path": "/article/4171293/copilot-chat-your-hub-for-document-creation-and-analysis.html",
  "publishedAt": "2026-05-20T11:00:00.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.computerworld.com",
  "tags": [
    "Artificial Intelligence, Generative AI, Microsoft 365, Microsoft Office, Office Suites, Productivity Software",
    "office.com",
    "Microsoft 365",
    "Currently called the M365 Copilot app",
    "Personal, Family, and Premium",
    "M365 Business Basic, Standard, and Premium",
    "Microsoft 365 E3/E5/E7",
    "small business",
    "enterprise",
    "removed access",
    "M365 Copilot web app",
    "downloadable M365 Copilot apps",
    "How to curb hallucinations in Copilot",
    "@analyst"
  ],
  "textContent": "Many years ago, Microsoft created a handy hub for its Office suite: type office.com into your browser, and you’d see a web page where you could launch the various Office apps — Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and so on — or access recently used documents in those apps. This hub’s appearance changed a bit over time as the Office suite was rebranded as Office 365 and then Microsoft 365, but it still served as a launch pad for your M365 files and apps.\n\nNow, however, Microsoft has deeply integrated its Copilot generative AI assistant throughout Microsoft 365, and the hub has been transformed. Currently called the M365 Copilot app, the page puts the Copilot Chat interface front and center. You can still get to your M365 files or apps by clicking _Search_ or _Apps_ in the sidebar on the left, but the main purpose of the hub these days is to let you chat with Copilot.\n\nThe old Microsoft Office hub has been taken over by Copilot Chat.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\nWith the rollout of new Word, Excel, and PowerPoint AI agents, you can use Copilot Chat in the M365 Copilot app to generate first-draft Word documents, Excel spreadsheets, and PowerPoint presentations. If you have a qualifying Microsoft subscription, you can also use the advanced Analyst agent in Copilot Chat to analyze M365 files in various ways. We’ll show you how.\n\n#### **In this article:**\n\n  * Who can use Copilot Chat in the M365 Copilot app\n  * Create a document, spreadsheet, or presentation with Copilot Chat\n  * Analyze your M365 documents in Copilot Chat\n  * Get collaboration insights using Copilot Chat\n\n\n\n### Who can use Copilot Chat in the M365 Copilot app\n\nAs of mid-2026, Microsoft has integrated Copilot Chat into most M365 plans, which include:\n\n  * Microsoft 365 for individuals: Personal, Family, and Premium plans. Note that only the subscriber account has access to Copilot tools. They cannot be shared with other users on a Family or Premium plan.\n  * Microsoft 365 for business users: A basic version of Copilot Chat is included with the small-business M365 Business Basic, Standard, and Premium plans as well as enterprise-level Office 365 E1/E3/E5 and Microsoft 365 E3/E5/E7 plans. Add-on M365 Copilot licenses for small business and enterprise offer advanced Copilot features (these are included with the top-level M365 E7 plan).\n\n\n\nMicrosoft recently removed access to Copilot Chat from within Word and other M365 apps for large enterprise users who don’t have an add-on M365 Copilot license. That means the M365 Copilot app is now the only way for those users to access Copilot Chat.\n\nIf you don’t have a Microsoft 365 plan, you don’t have access to Copilot Chat. You can still use the M365 Copilot app to get to your Office files and apps, but if you click _New chat_ , you’ll see a message saying that Copilot Chat requires an upgraded account.\n\nIn this guide, we’ll focus on using Copilot Chat in the M365 Copilot web app. There are also downloadable M365 Copilot apps for Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android. Depending on your M365 plan and computing environment, your interface may not exactly match the screenshots you see here, but it should work similarly.\n\n## Create a document, spreadsheet, or presentation with Copilot Chat\n\nUsing the M365 agents in Copilot Chat works mostly the same whether you’re creating a new Word document, Excel spreadsheet, or PowerPoint presentation.\n\n### 1. Add the AI agents (if needed)\n\nDepending on your Microsoft 365 plan and how it’s configured, you may or may not have the Word, Excel, and PowerPoint AI agents installed by default in Copilot Chat. If you don’t see them listed under “Agents” in the left sidebar, you’ll need to add them.\n\nClick _All agents_ in the left sidebar. You’ll be taken to the Agent Store, where you can browse through available agents built by Microsoft, third-party vendors, and/or your own organization. Type **word** into the search bar and select the _Word (Agent)_ result that appears. A panel pops up with information about the agent.\n\nAdding the Word agent to Copilot Chat.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\nClick _Add_ to install the agent in Copilot Chat. It will appear in your Agents list in the left sidebar. Repeat the process for the Excel and PowerPoint agents.\n\n### 2. Select the AI agent\n\nOn the Copilot Chat page, you first need to invoke a specific AI agent: In the left sidebar, select _Word_ , _PowerPoint_ , or _Excel_ from the Agents list. (If you don’t see the agent you want, select _All agents_ and then click on it.)\n\nAlternatively, inside the Copilot chat box, type **@** and select _Word_ (or whichever agent you want) from the results that appear below the chat box.\n\nSelect the Word, PowerPoint, or Excel agent to get started.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\n### 3. Enter your prompt\n\nEnter your prompt in the chat box, describing the details about the document, spreadsheet, or presentation that you want.\n\nExample to generate a Word document:\n\n  * _Create a document titled “Project Proposal.” Include sections for Executive Summary, Technical Requirements, and Budget. Use a formal business tone._\n\n\n\nAfter invoking the agent, type in your prompt.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\nTo generate an Excel spreadsheet, describe its structure. Example:\n\n  * _Generate a sales report for Q4 2026. Include columns for Date, Product Name, Units Sold, and Total Revenue. Format the Revenue column as currency._\n\n\n\nTo generate a PowerPoint presentation, specify important aspects of the presentation, such as its topic, audience, number of slides, etc. Example:\n\n  * _Build a presentation with 10 slides for a meeting announcing our new sustainability initiative. Include a slide for the timeline. Use an enthusiastic but professional tone._\n\n\n\n### 4. Attach a file for reference (optional)\n\nYou can attach one or more files to the chat box for Copilot to use as reference when generating your request. For example, you can attach a Word document and prompt the PowerPoint agent to create a presentation based on it:\n\n  * _Create a presentation from this document._\n\n\n\nor have the Word agent create a document based on an Excel spreadsheet:\n\n  * _Create a summary report based on the attached spreadsheet._\n\n\n\nTo attach a file, click the + icon on the chat box and select _Add content_ (to attach a file in your OneDrive) or _Upload files_ (to attach a file that’s on your local PC drive).\n\nAlternatively, if the file is stored in your OneDrive, you can type **/** (forward slash) in the chat box and start typing its filename. This also pulls up a list of files recently added to your OneDrive that you can select from, and there’s also a search box you can use to find the file.\n\nAdding a document to use as a source for a PowerPoint agent prompt.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\n### 5. Review the generated result\n\nWhen you’ve finished typing your prompt and optionally uploading a source file, press Enter or click the right-arrow button at the bottom right of the chat box.\n\nThe agent may ask you a few questions, mostly presented as options you select, before generating a result.\n\nThe PowerPoint agent typically asks a few questions about the presentation before it starts creating it.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\nDepending on the complexity of your prompt, Copilot will take several seconds to several minutes to generate a result. As it works, it will notify you of its progress.\n\nCopilot will tell you what it’s doing as it prepares a result.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\nWhen it’s done, it will automatically save the document, spreadsheet, or presentation that it generated to the Documents folder in your OneDrive.\n\nA large pane will also open in the right half of the screen, displaying the full document, spreadsheet, or presentation that Copilot generated. You can scroll vertically through it to review it.\n\nThe generated document appears in pane on the right.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\n**Important:** As always when using generative AI tools, check all results carefully for errors or fabrications. (See “How to curb hallucinations in Copilot” for tips on minimizing such errors.)\n\n### 6. Refine the generated result\n\nYou can refine the generated result by entering a follow-up prompt in the chat box.\n\nExample to refine a Word document:\n\n  * _Add a section on Network Security, and make the tone more casual._\n\n\n\nTo refine a generated Excel spreadsheet or PowerPoint presentation, you have to first attach it to the chat box: Type the forward slash (“/”) in the chat box. This will pull up a list of files recently added to your OneDrive, including the generated spreadsheet or presentation. Select it and then enter your prompt to refine it.\n\nExample to refine an Excel spreadsheet:\n\n  * _Add a column titled Price Per Unit and calculate this value for every row._\n\n\n\nwidth=\"654\" height=\"461\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 654px) 100vw, 654px\">\n\nTo refine a generated Excel spreadsheet, attach the file and say how you want it changed.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\nExample to refine a PowerPoint presentation:\n\n  * _Remove Slide 4. Add a blank slide at the end._\n\n\n\nCopilot will generate a revised version. This will be saved as a new file in the Documents folder in your OneDrive.\n\n### 7. Edit the generated result in a Microsoft 365 app\n\nIt’s best to think of genAI output as a template or first draft that you will update, add to, and otherwise tailor for your own needs. To do so, it’s easiest to open the generated file in the appropriate M365 app.\n\nAt the upper right, click _Open in Word_ , _Open in Excel_ , or _Open in PowerPoint_ to launch the web version of that app in a new browser tab. The generated document, spreadsheet, or presentation will appear inside the app so you can do further work on it.\n\n## Analyze your M365 documents in Copilot Chat\n\nYou can use Copilot Chat to analyze your M365 documents in various ways by invoking the Analyst agent. This agent is available only if you have a Microsoft 365 Premium plan or, in a business environment, if you have an add-on M365 Copilot license. (That said, there is a workaround for the third tip below for those who don’t have an advanced license.)\n\nIn the left sidebar, select _Analyst_ in the Agents list. (If you don’t see it, follow the instructions in step 1 above to add it.) Or, inside the Copilot chat box, type **@analyst** and press the Enter key.\n\nNext, attach the file or files that you want Copilot to analyze. Click the + icon on the chat box and select _Add content_ (to attach a file in your OneDrive) or _Upload files_ (to attach a file that’s on your local PC drive).\n\nCall up the Analyst agent and upload the files you want it to analyze.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\n**Notes for Excel and PowerPoint files:**\n\n  * Ensure that the data in an attached Excel file is formatted as a table. In this way, Copilot can better identify the range of values in it for analysis.\n  * For PowerPoint, the Analyst agent works best if your slide deck is text-heavy.\n\n\n\nHere are a few ways you can have Copilot analyze your files:\n\n### Identify trends in data sets or presentations\n\nUsing the Analyst agent, Copilot can act as a data analyst, spotting patterns and anomalies in your Excel or PowerPoint files. It can also identify missing data that would provide a more complete picture.\n\n**Tip:** For the most accurate results, describe a specific source (such as the name of a table or slide numbers) and the timeframe to give the agent boundaries for its analysis.\n\nPowerPoint example:\n\n  * _Look at slides 4 through 8. What are the themes or trends in our sales?_\n\n\n\nCopilot Chat’s Analyst agent can surface key themes in a PowerPoint presentation.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\nExcel example:\n\n  * _Show me the sales trends over the last month. Identify which product category is growing the fastest._\n\n\n\nIf your source file is missing the data Copilot needs for the trend analysis you’ve asked for, it will tell you so. It may instead provide a summary of the data the file does include and/or what can be inferred from the file’s data.\n\nCopilot correctly says it can’t provide the requested analysis from the source data.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\n### Project forecasts\n\nThe Analyst agent can use statistical models to project future values based on historical data in an Excel file. (These are simple projections and should not be presented as official forecasts.) Your source spreadsheet must include a time-based column, such as dates, and a numerical column for the values you want Copilot to forecast.\n\nExample:\n\n  * _Create a forecast for January based on the months of October, November, December in this spreadsheet._\n\n\n\nCopilot has projected January sales based on the average growth rate from October to December.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\nYou can also prompt the Analyst agent to create a projection based on an Excel spreadsheet and output it on a PowerPoint slide that you can download. Example:\n\n  * _Create one slide that shows a sales forecast based on the months of October, November, December in this spreadsheet._\n\n\n\nA sales forecast slide generated by Copilot.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\nThe agent explains how it calculated the forecast and offers suggestions for tweaking the result. Type whatever changes you want to make into the chat box, and Copilot will generate a new version of the slide.\n\nCopilot explains what it did and suggests possible changes.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\n### Compare document versions\n\nDocuments often go through multiple revisions, especially in a collaborative work environment. Unlike a basic versioning feature that lists literal differences, Copilot can provide contextual understanding and explain why a change is significant.\n\nAfter you’ve attached two files to the chat box, enter a prompt, such as:\n\n  * _Compare these two documents and highlight their key differences._\n\n\n\nThe Analyst agent summarizes the changes in the document’s overall direction and details the main differences in specific aspects of the document.\n\nThe Analyst agent explains how a document has changed overall, then cites key differences in areas such as title and positioning.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\n**Note:** If you don’t have access to the Analyst agent, you can alternatively try using the Word agent or the main Copilot Chat interface to compare two document versions. Like the Analyst agent, Copilot Chat presents its results in the chat window. If you use the Word agent, it creates a detailed comparison document after asking a series of questions about purpose, audience, and style.\n\n## Get collaboration insights using Copilot Chat\n\nWhen working on a project with your co-workers, it can be a challenge to keep up with who did what to a file. You can prompt Copilot to list edits and comments to a file. This allows you to catch up on the context of changes without having to open it.\n\nYou don’t need to invoke the Analyst agent to do this. This works better if you use the main Copilot Chat. Click the + icon to attach the file (document, spreadsheet, presentation).\n\nOptionally: At the upper-right corner, click _Auto_ , which will open a dropdown. Here you can select an AI model that gives you results faster, or one that spends more time “thinking” in order to give you better-quality results. A second dropdown at the bottom lets you select a specific AI model by name, such as GPT-5.3 or GPT-5.4. We recommend picking a “think deeper” model for insights retrieval.\n\nYou can optionally pick a model for Copilot to use when it generates results.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry\n\nExample prompts to extract collaboration insights:\n\n  * _What has [CO-WORKER NAME] updated or commented on in this document?_\n  * _Summarize the comments and feedback left by everyone in this attached document._\n\n\n\nCopilot will generate a detailed response based on your prompt.\n\nCopilot can summarize who did what to a shared document.\n\nHoward Wen / Foundry",
  "title": "Copilot Chat: Your hub for document creation and analysis"
}