Perspicuity Insights

Voice, chat and smarter agents: the new conversation

Written by David Tyler | Jan 7, 2026 11:32:00 AM

It's time to start doing things with fewer clicks, less technical know-how, and more conversations.

Microsoft Copilot is now more conversational and proactive - you can speak to it as if you were speaking to a colleague - and the new Agent Mode in Word, Excel and PowerPoint enables iterative workflows so you an refine a proposal or crunch numbers without breaking your focus.

Unsure where to start with Copilot? Get in touch with the Perspicuity team to book in a Copilot Readiness Assessment to assess if your environment is ready and secure to start adopting smart features.

Voice chat everywhere

Voice is now available in the Microsoft 365 Copilot app on desktop, web and mobile. You can start a voice chat hands-free with "hey, Copilot", brainstorm ideas, catch up on long documents or ask for meeting prep, all by speaking naturally.

Outlook's 'voice catch up' summarises unread emails and guides you through actions like drafting replies or archiving messages, all hands-free.

Want to try it? Ask Copilot to "summarise my inbox" or "prioritise today's tasks" and get instant results across devices.

Smarter agents

The era of the robotic chatbot is well and truly over, and the era of the enterprise agent has begun with Microsoft introducing Agent 365, a control plane for managing AI agents at scale. IT can now monitor agent behaviour, map connections and shut down rogue bots that violate compliance policies. Agents will no longer just be assistance, they're digital colleagues that can automate your tasks, orchestrate workflows and even collaborate with other agents.

Productivity where it hurts most

Are you experiencing email overload or meeting chaos? Copilot now handles inbox triage, meeting scheduling and even conflict resolution prompts directly in Outlook. One-tap actions like 'draft a reply' or 'reschedule' cuts through admin noise, saving you hours of time throughout the week that would be best used for more important work.

Why this matters

Microsoft Copilot (and AI in general) is no longer just a smart feature or a 'nice to have', it's becoming the new execution method for businesses globally. With Work IQ, voice chat and smarter agents, Copilot is positioned to become the intelligent backbone of our work environments through 2026 and beyond.

It's simple: do more with less, and collaborate with your systems and your in-person and digital colleagues seamlessly.