MC1202968 – M365 Change Digest

One-line summary

Agent Mode in Copilot for Excel enables users to use natural language to build, edit, and enrich workbooks, with web search and Claude AI support, rolling out by default from Jan 2026.

Similar updates

Details

RoadmapIds

542182

Summary

Agent Mode in Microsoft 365 Copilot for Excel (Windows and Mac) enables natural language interaction to build and edit workbooks, integrates web search for updated data, and supports Claude AI models. It rolls out worldwide from mid-January to early March 2026, requires no admin action, and respects existing data access settings.

Platforms

Desktop, Mac

Body (from Message Center)

[Introduction]

Agent Mode in Microsoft 365 Copilot for Excel, available in Excel for Windows and Excel for Mac, introduces a new way for users to work with Copilot in Excel. It uses natural language to build and edit workbooks, keeps content editable, and ensures users stay up to date with the latest changes. Agent Mode can search the web to pull in trusted, up-to-date information to complement Excel data, answer questions, provide context, and enrich analysis without leaving the workbook. It also supports working with Claude AI models from Anthropic to build workbooks directly in Excel.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 542182.

[When this will happen]

General Availability (Worldwide): Rollout will begin in mid-January 2026 and is expected to complete by early March 2026.

[How this will affect your organization]

Who is affected: All Microsoft 365 users licensed for Copilot who use Excel.
What will happen:
- Users will be able to access Agent Mode in Excel from the M365 Copilot Chat pane by selecting it from the Tools menu.
- Agent Mode will be available by default for eligible users.
- The feature supports Excel capabilities such as editing tables, charts, PivotTables, formulas, and more.
- No changes to existing admin policies are required.
- Some geographies may receive access later in the rollout window.

[What you need to do to prepare]

No admin action is required.
Agent Mode respects your Admin Center data access settings for Copilot web search.
Agent Mode in Excel is a method for using M365 Copilot Chat to interact with your active workbook and is not a Microsoft 365 Copilot agent that needs to be managed from the Admin Center.
You may wish to:
- Inform helpdesk and support teams about the availability of Agent Mode.
- Update internal documentation or training materials to reflect this new capability.

Learn more:

[Compliance considerations]

No compliance considerations identified. Review as appropriate for your organization.

Raw JSON (for debugging)

Expand/collapse the full payload below.

Show/hide raw

{
  "snapshot_item": {
    "action_required_by": null,
    "ai_action_required_by": "2026-01-15T00:00:00Z",
    "ai_actions": [
      "Inform helpdesk and support teams",
      "Update internal documentation or training"
    ],
    "ai_master_tags": [],
    "ai_model": "gpt-4.1",
    "ai_summary": "Agent Mode in Copilot for Excel enables users to use natural language to build, edit, and enrich workbooks, with web search and Claude AI support, rolling out by default from Jan 2026.",
    "ai_topics": [
      "Copilot",
      "Excel"
    ],
    "category": "stayInformed",
    "details_map": {
      "Platforms": "Desktop, Mac",
      "RoadmapIds": "542182",
      "Summary": "Agent Mode in Microsoft 365 Copilot for Excel (Windows and Mac) enables natural language interaction to build and edit workbooks, integrates web search for updated data, and supports Claude AI models. It rolls out worldwide from mid-January to early March 2026, requires no admin action, and respects existing data access settings."
    },
    "id": "MC1202968",
    "importance": 4,
    "is_major_change": false,
    "last_modified": "2025-12-22T21:38:57Z",
    "ms_products": [
      "Copilot"
    ],
    "platforms": "Desktop, Mac",
    "roadmap_ids": [
      "542182"
    ],
    "services": [
      "Microsoft Copilot (Microsoft 365)"
    ],
    "severity": "normal",
    "tags": [
      "New feature",
      "User impact",
      "Admin impact"
    ],
    "title": "Agent Mode in Excel for Windows and Mac"
  }
}