Microsoft pushes agentic Copilot, faces backlash

Microsoft is pushing Copilot past chat and into software that can carry out work on its own inside Microsoft 365. (techcrunch.com) TechCrunch reported on April 13 that Microsoft is developing an OpenClaw-like agent for enterprise customers, and Microsoft told The Information the tool would be an “always working” version of Microsoft 365 Copilot that can take actions over time. (techcrunch.com) Microsoft has already been moving in that direction. On March 9, Charles Lamanna said Copilot Cowork can turn a request into a plan, keep tasks running in the background, and ask for approval before applying changes in Outlook, Teams, Excel, and other Microsoft 365 apps. (microsoft.com) That shift changes what Copilot is supposed to be. Instead of answering a prompt once, these agents are meant to keep working across email, meetings, files, and calendars until a task is finished. (microsoft.com) (techcrunch.com) Microsoft is making that push while it is also backing away from some of Copilot’s most visible placements in Windows. Pavan Davuluri said in late March that Microsoft would be “more intentional” about Copilot integration and would reduce entry points in Notepad, Snipping Tool, Photos, and Widgets. (theregister.com) Mozilla used that rollback to argue Microsoft had already crossed the line. Linda Griffin, Mozilla’s vice president of global policy, said Microsoft had pushed Copilot into Windows “without user consent” through automatic installs, default settings, and Edge behaviors that overrode user choice. (theregister.com) The retreat has shown up in product design as well as policy. SlashGear reported that a recent Windows 11 Insider build removed Copilot branding from apps such as Notepad even though the underlying artificial intelligence writing features remained in place. (slashgear.com) Microsoft has not dropped the agent plan. Its Build conference is scheduled for June 2-3 in San Francisco, and the event site says the program will focus on agent architectures, multi-model workflows, and the latest artificial intelligence capabilities. (build.microsoft.com) So Microsoft is now trying to do two things at once: make Copilot more autonomous inside work software, while making it less forced and less conspicuous in Windows. The next test is whether customers accept more powerful agents when the company says control and approval stay with the user. (microsoft.com) (theregister.com)