Microsoft Copilot has changed a lot over the past month. Microsoft recently outlined its broader plan for a unified AI experience across Microsoft 365, but it also shipped several new Copilot features users can try right now.
Microsoft rounded up the changes in a recent blog post, highlighting updates across Copilot Chat, Teams, Word, PowerPoint, SharePoint, and OneDrive. The updates expand Copilot to more services and add new features across Microsoft's software suite:
- "New design and functionality for Copilot Chat
- Plugins, connectors, and Work IQ enhancements to the Copilot App
- Teams Phone agent for Copilot in Teams Phone
- Citations and image modifications for Copilot in Word
- Skills and connectors for Copilot in PowerPoint
- General availability for Copilot in SharePoint
- General availability for Copilot in OneDrive"
Microsoft outlined several new features, but one stood out to me: citations in Copilot responses.
Copilot can be a useful tool, but it has limits. If you've ever asked Copilot to handle a task that depends on current information, you've probably run into those limits. AI tools can also struggle when interpreting historical, legal, or highly specialized material.
Now, Microsoft Word can show its sources for specific Copilot answers. You can then click the source to confirm the information provided by Copilot.
"Citations in Copilot responses in Word let users see the sources behind Copilot’s answers. Users can view citations to relevant web and work content directly in the response," explains Microsoft.
"This provides greater transparency and helps users understand where Copilot’s information comes from."
Hallucinations are one problem, but AI tools can also misinterpret legitimate sources and present incorrect conclusions. In some cases, an AI tool can misread context and produce an incorrect response. I've had Copilot share the exact opposite of the truth before.
Citations with links allow you to check the source material and make sure Copilot understood the context of the source and extracted the correct information.
Windows Central take
I've found that Copilot (and other AI tools) can make up seemingly authentic sources of information. If you ever use the tool for meaningful work, you need to double-check original sources and assume Copilot will make mistakes.
Of course, that fact could be used to argue that you just should not use Copilot for work. But there's probably a middle ground where Copilot helps draft or gather information while a human verifies the final output.
In general chats with Copilot, you should ask for a source and press Copilot if it continues to speak in generalities. The new feature in Word simplifies that process and ensures that there's a verifiable source of content generated by Copilot.
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