Tech & AI, Explained

microsoft-copilot

11 min read

🇺🇸 USA · Microsoft Copilot

Status: 🟩 COMPLETE 🟦 LIVING Last updated: 2026-06-25 Plain-English tagline: Microsoft’s umbrella brand for all its AI assistants — the consumer chatbot at copilot.microsoft.com, the version embedded in Windows + Edge + Bing, and the enterprise “Microsoft 365 Copilot” that lives inside Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, and PowerPoint.

“Copilot” is one word Microsoft uses for many separate products. This entry covers the consumer Copilot. The deeper-integrated products get their own entries: Microsoft 365 Copilot 🟥 (Office), Windows 🟥, Copilot+ PCs 🟥 (the hardware category), Microsoft Recall 🟥 (the on-device memory feature), GitHub Copilot 🟥 (coding), Copilot Studio 🟥 (building custom Copilots), Azure OpenAI Service 🟥 (the underlying enterprise API).

Front-matter facts

FieldValue
VendorMicrosoft Corporation (Redmond, USA)
Country / origin🇺🇸 USA
Recommended for Australian users?✅ Yes — fully accessible from AUS, AUD billing through Microsoft account
Privacy summaryConsumer Copilot Free/Pro: trains by default; opt out in Settings → Privacy → Model training on text. M365 Copilot (work): never trains. Azure OpenAI Service: never trains.
Free tierYes — generous; uses GPT-5 family + Microsoft’s own models; web search, image generation (Designer), file uploads, voice
Paid tiersCopilot Pro US30/user/mo annual (work) · Azure OpenAI Service pay-per-token
First released”Bing Chat” launched 7 February 2023 (powered by GPT-4); rebranded to “Copilot” in September 2023
Last reviewed2026-06-25
Official sitehttps://copilot.microsoft.com

What it is

Copilot is Microsoft’s consumer AI chatbot, available at copilot.microsoft.com and through dedicated mobile apps and Windows / Edge integration. Under the hood it primarily uses OpenAI’s GPT family (Microsoft is the largest non-OpenAI investor in OpenAI), supplemented by Microsoft’s own MAI models for some features.

It started as “Bing Chat” in February 2023 — the surprise GPT-4-powered chatbot Microsoft launched a few months ahead of OpenAI’s own ChatGPT-4 release. The rebrand to “Copilot” in September 2023 unified the brand across Microsoft’s whole AI portfolio.

Analogy: Copilot is “GPT inside Microsoft’s universe.” If you spend your day in Windows, Edge, Office, or use a Microsoft account for personal email — Copilot is the AI that’s already there waiting for you, with no separate sign-up.

What you’d use it for

  • General chat — same kind of questions you’d ask ChatGPT or Gemini
  • Inside Windows 11 / Windows 12 — Copilot Key on newer keyboards opens it instantly; it can change settings, open apps, summarise screenshots
  • Inside Edge browser — sidebar Copilot can summarise the page you’re reading, compose with web context
  • Inside Bing search — conversational answers with citations
  • Image generation — Microsoft Designer powered by gpt-image-1, generous free quota
  • Voice mode — Copilot Voice for spoken conversation
  • Vision — upload images and ask about them, or share your screen via Copilot Vision
  • Microsoft Designer — graphic design AI for posters, social posts, presentations
  • Copilot in Word/Excel/PowerPoint/Outlook/Teams — but this is the SEPARATE Microsoft 365 Copilot product, gated to M365 subscribers
  • Daily news briefings — Pulse-style proactive briefings (Pro tier)
  • Recall (on Copilot+ PCs) — AI-indexed history of everything that happened on your PC (separate product; controversial; see its own entry)

How to sign up + first 5 minutes from Australia

  1. Go to copilot.microsoft.com in any browser.
  2. Sign in with your Microsoft account — the same account you use for Outlook.com, Xbox, OneDrive, Windows, or any Microsoft service. If you don’t have one, click Sign up — takes 60 seconds with your existing email.
  3. You’re now on the free tier. No additional setup. You can immediately chat, generate images with Designer, and use voice mode.
  4. Try one of these:
    • “Summarise today’s Australian news headlines” (uses Bing search)
    • “Create an image of a Sydney sunset over the Opera House” (uses Designer / gpt-image-1)
    • Click the microphone for voice mode and have a conversation
    • On Windows 11/12: press the Copilot key (or Win + C) — Copilot opens in a sidebar with desktop context
    • In Microsoft Edge: click the Copilot icon (top-right) to summarise the current webpage
  5. For Windows 11 / 12: Copilot is already installed. The icon is in the taskbar; the Copilot key is on most new keyboards.
  6. Mobile app: download “Microsoft Copilot” from the App Store / Google Play.
  7. Optional — upgrade to Copilot Pro. US$20/mo. Subscribe via copilot.microsoft.com → Get Copilot Pro. AUS card / PayPal accepted. Note Pro is for personal use; for work you want M365 Copilot, which is a separate product.

What it costs — what you actually get

Free tier

  • GPT-5 model access — generous daily message limit
  • Microsoft Designer image generation — generous quota (currently 15 boosts/day refilled daily)
  • Voice mode — generous
  • File uploads (images, PDFs, docs)
  • Page summarisation in Edge
  • Windows / Edge / Bing integration
  • Memory (Copilot remembers facts across chats)

Copilot Pro — US36 incl GST)

  • Priority access to top GPT-5 variants during peak hours
  • More daily Designer image boosts
  • Copilot in Word / Excel / PowerPoint / Outlook / OneNote — but ONLY if you also have a Microsoft 365 Personal or Family subscription (otherwise you need M365 Copilot, see below)
  • Higher voice usage
  • Faster response in periods of high load
  • For heavy personal use of the consumer Copilot

Microsoft 365 Copilot — US$30/user/month (annual commit)

  • This is the business / work product
  • Embeds Copilot deeply into Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams, OneNote, OneDrive, SharePoint, Loop
  • Uses YOUR organisation’s data (emails, docs, calendars) as context
  • No training on your data — contractually committed
  • Tenant-isolated, admin-controllable
  • Requires an existing Microsoft 365 Business or Enterprise subscription
  • The “real” Copilot product for getting work done in Office
  • Minimum subscription quantity varies by region

Copilot for Microsoft 365 (Enterprise tier)

  • Higher security, EU Data Boundary option, customer-managed encryption keys
  • Microsoft Purview integration for data-loss-prevention
  • Audit logs in Microsoft 365 Defender

Azure OpenAI Service — pay-per-token

  • The enterprise developer API to GPT models, with Microsoft data-governance
  • AUS data residency (Australia East region available)
  • No training on your data — contractually committed
  • Used to build custom apps that talk to GPT models with Microsoft compliance posture

Hidden costs to know about

  • Copilot Pro is personal only. For business Office integration you need Microsoft 365 Copilot at US30 + US$10-22 per seat per month
  • GitHub Copilot (the coding tool) is a separate product and bill — see its own entry
  • Recall (the on-device memory feature) is included with Copilot+ PCs at no extra cost; it’s also controversial — read its own entry before turning it on

How it compares to alternatives

CapabilityCopilot Pro (consumer)ChatGPT PlusGemini AI Pro
Chat modelGPT-5 familyGPT-5 familyGemini 3 Pro
Daily chat qualityExcellentExcellentExcellent
Image generationBuilt-in (Designer + gpt-image-1)Built-in (gpt-image-1)Built-in (Imagen)
Video generationLimitedSora (built-in)Veo 3 (built-in)
Voice modeGood (Copilot Voice)Best (Advanced Voice)Good (Gemini Live)
Web searchBest (Bing integration)YesBest (Google integration)
OS integrationBest — Windows + Edge + OfficeGood — apps everywhereBest for Android + ChromeOS
Office integrationBest — Word, Excel, etc. (via M365 Copilot — extra subscription)LimitedExcellent (Workspace AI)
CodingGood chat; GitHub Copilot for IDEGoodGood
Browser agentLimitedOperator/AgentProject Mariner (preview)
MemoryYesYesYes
Price (consumer top tier)US$20US$20US$19.99
Price (work)US$30 (M365 Copilot) on top of M365 licenseUS$25-30 (Team)US$22-30 (Workspace + Gemini)

If you live in Windows + Office, Copilot is the natural choice — no separate sign-up, deeply integrated, the same Microsoft account you already have. For pure chat quality without the Microsoft tie-in, ChatGPT and Claude are equivalent or better at the model level. For work, the comparison between M365 Copilot, Google Workspace Gemini, and ChatGPT Team is fundamentally about which productivity suite you’re already on.

Privacy / data handling deep dive

Consumer Copilot (Free + Pro): Microsoft uses your conversations to improve the service by default. To opt out:

  1. Open Copilot → Settings (top-right) → Privacy
  2. Toggle OFF “Model training on text”
  3. (Optional) Toggle OFF “Model training on voice” if you use voice mode

You can also review and delete past activity at privacy.microsoft.com under the Privacy Dashboard.

Microsoft 365 Copilot (work): Microsoft does NOT train on your tenant’s data. Contractually committed in the M365 Copilot terms. Inputs, outputs, and prompts stay within your Microsoft 365 service boundary.

Azure OpenAI Service: Microsoft does NOT train on your inputs. Microsoft will fine-tune Azure-customer data ONLY with explicit per-customer consent. Inputs may be retained for 30 days for abuse-monitoring, then deleted (organisations with strict needs can apply for the “Limited Access” abuse-monitoring exemption).

GitHub Copilot: see its own entry. Pro/Business/Enterprise don’t train on private code.

Memory: Copilot remembers facts across chats. Manage at Settings → Memory. You can review and delete individual memories.

Where data lives: US data centres by default for consumer. M365 Copilot data lives in your tenant’s region (Australia East for AUS tenants). Azure OpenAI Service supports Australia East with explicit data-residency commitment.

Recall (separate feature, on Copilot+ PCs): locally indexed history of what’s been on your screen, on-device only by default. Has been the subject of significant privacy criticism. Off by default since the controversy in 2024-25; opt-in only. Read the Recall entry before enabling.

Australian Privacy Act: Microsoft is subject to it. They publish a Privacy Statement meeting Australian Privacy Principles. Australia East data residency satisfies most APP 8 cross-border transfer concerns.

Transparency: Microsoft publishes annual transparency reports and a Responsible AI report.

See privacy-and-data-training.md 🟩 🟦 for the comparative deep dive.

Recent changes (since the last review)

  • June 2026: Copilot Pro plus Personal Pulse rolled out — proactive daily briefings on topics you care about
  • 2026: GPT-5 family became the default model for Copilot Free + Pro
  • Late 2025: Copilot Vision (screen-sharing voice + camera) generally available
  • 2025: Recall re-released after redesign for opt-in + on-device + encrypted-only
  • 2025: Copilot Voice rolled out globally
  • 2024: “Bing Chat” rebranded to “Copilot”; product line unified across Microsoft surfaces
  • 2024: Microsoft Designer (image generation) integrated into Copilot

(See news.microsoft.com for the latest.)

Gotchas

  • “Copilot” is many products — chat, Office, GitHub, Edge, Windows, Pages, Studio, Recall, Copilot+ PCs. The shared brand causes confusion. Always pin down WHICH Copilot you mean before subscribing.
  • Copilot Pro is consumer; M365 Copilot is business — they look similar in branding but are different products at different prices doing different things. Pro for personal Office use (with an M365 Personal/Family subscription); M365 Copilot for work Office use (with an M365 Business/Enterprise subscription).
  • The Office integration in Copilot Pro requires an M365 Personal/Family subscription on top — Pro alone doesn’t give you Copilot in Word at home; you also need M365 Personal/Family.
  • M365 Copilot has a minimum seat count or commitment — Microsoft adjusts this regionally; in early 2026 the minimum was lifted for many SMB customers, but check current terms.
  • “Recall” controversy — when first announced (May 2024), Recall would have captured screenshots of everything you did on your PC by default, with weak encryption. Microsoft delayed and redesigned it after major security pushback. The current Recall (off by default, on-device, encrypted, opt-in) is reasonable, but if you read older articles you’ll find the older — and more alarming — design.
  • The Copilot key on new keyboards can be reassigned in Windows Settings — if you don’t use Copilot, repurpose it.
  • Copilot in Edge sidebar reads the page you’re on — useful for summarisation, but means the page content is sent to Microsoft. Don’t use the sidebar to “summarise” a page with sensitive personal data.
  • Bing Chat history is separate from Copilot.com history — some users find chats split across surfaces depending on where they were initiated.
  • Mobile Copilot app and Cortana are different — Cortana was Microsoft’s old assistant, sunset in 2024. The Copilot app is the replacement.
  • Free tier limits are not always visible — you’ll get a “try again later” message when you hit them. Pro generally removes friction.
  • “Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat” is yet another thing — a free chat surface tied to M365 work accounts, but using the work tenant’s permissions to look up data. Different feature set from consumer Copilot.

See also

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