Tag: ai

copilot-studio

General Availability of the Microsoft Copilot Studio Extension for Visual Studio Code

Goloknath

with reference to above link pls provide 1. Topic name 2. Realtime user journey for this feature 3. Step by step how to enable this feature 4. Infographic

General Availability of the Microsoft Copilot Studio Extension for Visual Studio Code

This release brings “Pro-Code” capabilities to agent development, allowing developers to treat AI agents like traditional software by using an Integrated Development Environment (IDE), source control, and CI/CD pipelines.

Real-time User Journey

The extension enables a “local development loop” for building complex agents:

  1. Clone: The developer pulls an existing agent definition from the cloud (Copilot Studio) into their local VS Code workspace.
  2. Edit: Using the IDE, the developer modifies topics, tools, and triggers. They benefit from IntelliSense, syntax highlighting, and the ability to use GitHub Copilot to co-author agent logic.
  3. Review: The developer uses standard Git commands to stage changes, view “diffs” (what changed), and resolve conflicts before pushing updates.
  4. Sync: Once the local edits are ready, the developer “Applies Changes” to sync the local code back to the Copilot Studio cloud environment for testing.
  5. Deploy: The agent definition is checked into a repository (like GitHub or Azure DevOps), triggering an automated pipeline to promote the agent from Dev to Test to Production.

Step-by-Step: How to Enable

To start using the extension, follow these steps:

  • Step 1: Installation: Go to the Visual Studio Marketplace (or the Extensions view in VS Code) and search for/install the “Microsoft Copilot Studio” extension.
  • Step 2: Authentication: Sign in to your Microsoft 365 / Power Platform account through VS Code to link your environments.
  • Step 3: Connect to an Agent: Open the Copilot Studio icon in the VS Code sidebar. Browse your environments and select an agent to “Clone” locally.
  • Step 4: Develop: Open the generated folder structure. You can now edit the YAML-based agent definitions directly.
  • Step 5: Sync Back: After making changes, use the extension’s command palette or sidebar button to “Apply Changes” back to the cloud.

 Infographic: Pro-Code Agent Development

The following table summarizes the shift from “Low-Code” to “Pro-Code” with this extension:

FeatureWeb-Based (Low-Code)VS Code (Pro-Code)
InterfaceVisual Canvas (Drag-and-Drop)YAML / Text-Based IDE
CollaborationLive Presence / Shared CanvasGit, Pull Requests, Code Reviews
AI AssistanceNatural Language DescriptionsGitHub Copilot / Inline Chat
SpeedBest for quick prototypesBest for bulk edits & complex logic
DeploymentManual PublishAutomated DevOps / CI/CD Pipelines

References

Copilot Studio Extension for Visual Studio Code Is Now Generally Available
AI Foundry, contact-centre, copilot-studio, Customer Experience, Customer-service, Power Apps, Power Automate

Microsoft Ignite 2025: Transitioning to the Era of Agentic Business Transformation

Goloknath

Microsoft Ignite 2025: Transitioning to the Era of Agentic Business Transformation

The central theme for November 2025 was the evolution of Copilot Studio into a foundation for “agentic” workflows—where AI agents don’t just assist but autonomously drive business processes with human oversight.

Real-time User Journey: Human-in-the-Loop (HITL)

One of the most significant “real-time” journeys introduced is the Human-in-the-Loop capability:

  1. Autonomous Start: An agent begins a multi-step workflow (e.g., processing a high-value procurement order).
  2. Pause for Judgment: The agent reaches a step requiring approval or specific context (e.g., the order exceeds a price threshold).
  3. Real-time Request: The agent automatically pauses and sends a structured Outlook form to a designated human reviewer.
  4. Human Action: The person reviews the details and submits their input/approval via the form.
  5. Resumption: The agent receives the response and immediately resumes the workflow using the human’s input as a parameter to complete the task.

Step-by-Step: How to Enable GPT-5 Chat

GPT-5 Chat became generally available in November 2025 for US and EU customers. To enable it:

  • Step 1: Open your agent’s Overview page in Microsoft Copilot Studio.
  • Step 2: Locate the Model Selection settings.
  • Step 3: Select GPT-5 Chat from the dropdown menu to set it as the primary model.
  • Step 4 (Experimental): For US customers wanting to test the latest reasoning, you can toggle on GPT-5.2 (Experimental) in early release environments for improved code generation and multilingual support.

Infographic: The New Agentic Capabilities

The November 2025 update expanded the platform across three core pillars:

Intelligence (Models)Action (Skills)Governance (Control)
GPT-5 GA: Higher accuracy and instruction-following.Human-in-the-Loop: Agents pause for human approval.Microsoft Agent 365: The unified control plane for agents.
Model Choice: Multi-model support (OpenAI, Anthropic, xAI).Action Groups: One-click sets for Outlook/SharePoint tools.Entra Agent ID: Identity-based security for every agent.
MCP Integration: Connects to 1,400+ external systems.Producer Skills: Generate Word, Excel, and PPT files.Defender for Agents: Real-time threat protection.

References

What’s new in Microsoft Copilot Studio: November 2025
AI Foundry, copilot-studio

Announcing Claude Opus 4.5 in Microsoft Copilot Studio

Goloknath

Based on the Microsoft Copilot blog post from November 24, 2025, here is the information regarding the announcement of Claude Opus 4.5 in Copilot Studio:

Announcing Claude Opus 4.5 in Microsoft Copilot Studio

This update marks the integration of Anthropic’s most powerful model into the Copilot Studio platform, providing developers with advanced reasoning and long-context capabilities for building complex agents.

Real-time User Journey

The user journey for Claude Opus 4.5 centers on high-complexity, multi-step problem solving:

  1. Complexity Identification: A developer identifies a business process that requires deep reasoning over vast amounts of data (e.g., analyzing a 200-page legal contract alongside historical case files).
  2. Model Selection: Within Copilot Studio, the developer selects Claude Opus 4.5 as the reasoning engine for their agent.
  3. Interaction: The end-user provides a high-level goal, such as “Identify all conflicting clauses in these five documents and suggest a reconciliation strategy based on our internal compliance handbook.”
  4. Long-Context Reasoning: The agent utilizes the model’s massive context window to ingest all documents simultaneously, maintaining the “thread” across long, multi-step logic paths.
  5. Execution: The agent produces a highly nuanced output, citing specific sections of the context provided, and can trigger follow-up actions like drafting an email to the legal team.

Step-by-Step: How to Enable

As an experimental model, Claude Opus 4.5 requires administrative permission to use:

  • Step 1: Admin Opt-in: A Microsoft 365 Administrator must log in to the Microsoft 365 Admin Center.
  • Step 2: External Model Settings: Navigate to the settings for external AI models and explicitly opt-in to Anthropic models (if not already done).
  • Step 3: Access Copilot Studio: Once opted in, go to Microsoft Copilot Studio.
  • Step 4: Create/Open an Agent: Open an existing agent or create a new one.
  • Step 5: Select Model: Go to Settings > Generative AI. Under the model selection dropdown, choose Claude Opus 4.5 (Experimental).
  • Step 6: Test: Use the “Test your agent” pane to validate how the new model performs with your specific prompts and knowledge base.

Infographic: Claude Opus 4.5 Core Strengths

The following table highlights why Claude Opus 4.5 is positioned as the “premium” choice for complex agents:

FeatureCapabilityBenefit for Agents
Sharper ReasoningAdvanced logical deduction.Solves “impossible” problems that stump smaller models.
Long-ContextHandles massive datasets.Reads hundreds of pages in a single turn without losing focus.
Multi-Step TasksStronger instruction following.Executes complex sequences of actions with high accuracy.
Model ChoiceMulti-vendor flexibility.Allows developers to use Agent Evaluations to pick the best model for the job.

References

Announcing Claude Opus 4.5 in Microsoft Copilot Studio
copilot-studio, Power Apps

Inside the New Power Apps: A Reimagined Developer Experience for the Agentic Era

Goloknath

This update introduces a completely new developer surface (located at vibe.powerapps.com) that combines “vibe coding” (high-speed, natural language development) with enterprise-grade scalability. It redefines app development by using a team of specialized AI agents to build full-stack applications.

Real-time User Journey: Multi-Agent App Creation

The new user journey shifts from “dragging and dropping” to “collaborative directing”:

  1. Vision Prompting: A maker describes a complex business problem in natural language: “I need an app for our field technicians to track equipment repairs, check inventory parts in real-time, and automatically notify customers via email.”
  2. Agent Collaboration: A team of agents springs into action:
    • The Researcher Agent: Outlines detailed user stories and functional requirements.
    • The Data Agent: Proposes and builds an optimized data model in Dataverse.
    • The UI/UX Agent: Drafts the modern, responsive interface including forms and galleries.
  3. Real-time Preview: Within minutes, the maker sees a full-stack, functional “draft” of the app.
  4. Human-in-the-Loop Refinement: The maker can give iterative feedback (e.g., “Make the status buttons color-coded”) and the agents update the code and logic immediately.
  5. Seamless Handoff: Once satisfied, the app is ready for deployment with built-in governance, security, and the Power Apps MCP Server already configured to interact with other agents.

Step-by-Step: How to Enable the New Power Apps

Note: This feature was launched at Ignite 2025 and is being rolled out to Managed Environments.

  • Step 1: Access the New Portal: Navigate to the new developer entry point at vibe.powerapps.com.
  • Step 2: Environment Readiness: Ensure your environment is a Managed Environment in the Power Platform Admin Center to support agentic capabilities.
  • Step 3: Enable Copilot & Agents: Under the environment settings, ensure the Generative AI and Copilot features are toggled to “On.”
  • Step 4: Use the MCP Server: To allow your apps to interact with agents (like M365 Copilot), enable the Power Apps Model Context Protocol (MCP) Server in the app settings. This allows agents to “read” your app’s screens and perform tasks like intelligent form filling.
  • Step 5: Governance Setup: In the Admin Center, configure the new Inventory and Usage reporting to monitor the agents and apps created in this new environment.

Infographic: Reimagining App Development

This update marks a shift from “Low-Code” to “Agentic-Code”:

PillarLegacy Power AppsThe New Power Apps (2026 Wave)
Development StyleManual drag-and-drop components.Vibe Coding (Natural language + Agents).
BrainpowerSingle maker expertise.Team of Specialized Agents (Data, UI, Research).
ConnectivityManual connector configuration.MCP Server (Apps provide “skills” to agents).
SpeedHours or days to MVP.Minutes from prompt to full-stack app.
GovernanceManual app auditing.AI-Powered Governance with real-time risk assessment.

References

Inside the new Power Apps: The future of app development
AI Foundry, architecture, copilot-studio

What’s New in Copilot Studio: September 2025 – Expanding Reach, Automation, and Analytics

Goloknath

What’s New in Copilot Studio: September 2025 – Expanding Reach, Automation, and Analytics

The September updates focused on three core areas: building richer agent experiences (specifically via Computer Use and WhatsApp), advanced developer tools like Code Interpreter, and deeper ROI/Analytics for measuring business impact.

Real-time User Journey: Computer Use (Public Preview)

The most innovative journey introduced is the ability for an agent to interact with UIs like a human:

  1. Scenario Discovery: A user needs to enter data into an old legacy desktop application that doesn’t have an API.
  2. Instruction: The user tells the agent, “Open the legacy ERP, look up invoice #123, and copy the total into this Excel sheet.”
  3. Vision & Reasoning: The agent uses its “vision” to see the screen and its “reasoning” to identify buttons and text fields.
  4. Execution: On a hosted Windows 365 browser or local device, the agent moves the virtual mouse, clicks, and types to complete the task.
  5. Completion: The agent confirms the data has been moved and provides a screenshot or log of the completed action.

Step-by-Step: How to Enable WhatsApp (General Availability)

With WhatsApp integration now GA, you can deploy agents to customers globally:

  • Step 1: Prerequisites: Ensure you have a Meta Business Account and a verified phone number for WhatsApp.
  • Step 2: Access Channels: In Copilot Studio, open your agent and go to the Channels tab.
  • Step 3: Select WhatsApp: Choose WhatsApp from the list of available channels.
  • Step 4: Connect to Meta: Follow the guided wizard to link your Copilot Studio agent to your Meta Business Manager.
  • Step 5: Configure Interactions: Set up how the agent should handle attachments (images/files) and authentication (via phone number).
  • Step 6: Go Live: Once connected, your agent is accessible to anyone messaging that verified WhatsApp number.

Infographic: Scaling and Measuring AI Impact

The September update introduced a suite of “Enterprise-Ready” tools to manage agents at scale:

CapabilityWhat it DoesBusiness Value
Code Interpreter (GA)Executes Python code directly within agents.Solves complex math, data visualizations, and CRUD operations on Dataverse.
ROI Analysis (GA)Tracks savings in time or money per agent run.Provides real-time data to justify AI investment and prioritize projects.
File Groups (GA)Organizes up to 12,000 files into 25 groups.Improves knowledge retrieval accuracy and reduces “context chaos.”
Agents Client SDKEmbeds agents in native Android, iOS, or Windows apps.Keeps users in their flow of work without switching to Teams or Web.

References

What’s new in Copilot Studio: September 2025