Microsoft Copilot in one minute
Watch the names: in its documentation checked on 8 October 2026, Microsoft now calls Microsoft 365 Copilot Microsoft Copilot, and Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat Microsoft Copilot Chat. GitHub Copilot remains a separate name for software development. Earlier names may persist in documentation and licences during the transition.
Which Copilot do you mean?
Copilot for personal use and Copilot within an organisation have different contexts and access rules. Business use includes working with documents, email, meetings and organisational knowledge in the Microsoft ecosystem. A personal account does not automatically receive access to that work data.
The Microsoft 365 Copilot name therefore remains useful for understanding earlier explanations and licences, but on the review date we do not treat it as a completely separate new brand alongside Microsoft Copilot. Current Microsoft documentation distinguishes experiences including Copilot and Copilot Chat by integration, data context and licensing.
GitHub Copilot remains focused on software: suggesting code, explaining a repository, reviewing changes and carrying out agent tasks. It operates within development environments and GitHub workflows. Access to an office assistant does not automatically include all GitHub features.
Models, business context and permissions
Copilot products combine models with search, data sources and tools. Microsoft develops its own MAI models and also uses models from other providers. Microsoft describes its own models being used in Excel and GitHub Copilot; other experiences also offer external models. Naming one model as the engine of every Copilot is incorrect.
Business answers can be grounded in web information or permitted organisational data through services including Microsoft Graph and Work IQ. Licensing and settings determine available context. A chat with an attached document differs from an experience able to search permitted business sources.
The integration must respect existing access rights. Even with appropriate access, an answer can draw an incorrect conclusion. Check that a retrieved agreement comes from the right document and version.
Example: from a meeting to a reviewed action
A marketing team wants a campaign brief and task list after a meeting. A suitable Copilot experience can process available notes and documents. The team checks responsibilities and deadlines before sharing the draft or creating tasks.
Copilot Studio lets organisations design agents and workflows and connect them to business systems. An agent can retrieve data and invoke a tool; its environment determines which action gets executed. Approval steps are useful where an error affects customers, budgets or publications.
Choose according to the workplace and intended action: understanding a document, preparing a campaign or changing code. Check availability, licensing and administration settings for the actual implementation. A button labelled Copilot alone does not tell you enough about its underlying capabilities.