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Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license

Author: David Beniam

Published: 17 Jan 2024

Chat GPT style conversational AI in Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams, and more Microsoft 365 apps finally launched in November 2023, some have access but with a starting price of $100k per year ($30 per user per month and a minimum of 300 users), it is too steep for most, so we explore alternatives. This article (or jump to the end of the article for a summary table) will cover Microsoft 365 Copilot’s capabilities and also describe alternative ways, beat for beat, to get to the same features, however, this is a non-exhaustive list based on capabilities in early 2024.

Microsoft 365’s Copilot at a glance

Microsoft 365’s Copilot brings generative AI in context to your work files. Where chat GPT/other AI may tell you the steps to highlight cells above 50 in your Excel table or rewrite a Word paragraph in bullet points, Copilot will actually do that to your document. In certain cases, useful features that Copilot cannot accomplish are shown too.

There are many products which Microsoft is placing under the umbrella brand of Copilot.

  • Copilot for Microsoft 365 is available for $30 per employee per month for businesses. This article is focused on this.
  • Copilot Pro is available for individuals at $20 per user per month. The majority of this article shows features available here.
  • Several other iterations such as Copilot exist. Copilot for Windows, PowerApps, Git Hub, Edge, or Bing (formerly Bing chat).

This article focuses on the first two.

Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license

The main alternative tools featured include chat GPT (free or £16 per month for GPT4) and graphic design tool turned productivity suite Canva (free or Canva Pro at £100 per year), Adobe Express (free or £10 per month), Google Apps, Bing Copilot and others are also shown too.

From personal experience, whilst certain Copilot experiences (such as Teams and Outlook) are truly something new, several other features marketed as Copilot have been available natively within the app for a few years (such as Excel’s ask a question about your Data or create PowerPoint presentation from a prompt).

Copilot in PowerPoint (Available in Copilot for Microsoft 365 and Copilot Pro unless otherwise stated)

This video shows the key alternatives for Copilot for PowerPoint and image enhancing, and the text is below:

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  1. Animate a slide: Animations can be tedious, but Copilot can set different animation styles for different objects easily. Canva pro’s magic animate goes further by generating several options which combine animations in an elegant way.
  2. Text to presentation/slide: PowerPoint can natively create a presentation from a prompt by clicking New > QuickStarter, Canva can create one or more slides from a prompt too. Here are samples from PowerPoint native, Canva, chat GPT and Copilot. Note that Copilot Pro doesn’t have this feature for now.
Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license
Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license
  1. Doc to/from deck: Although Copilot generates stronger results, Word Online can be converted into a presentation by clicking File > Export > Export to PowerPoint, Canva Pro can convert a presentation to an email, a summary or more (via magic switch) or vice versa.
  2. Summarise a presentation: Ask Copilot, GPT 4 or Canva Pro, this is GPT 4’s summary whilst this appears when you use magic switch in Canva.
Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license
  1. Generate speaker notes: Ask Copilot or upload a file to GPT 4 and generate speaker notes
  2. Organise into sections & add agenda: Click in between slides in PowerPoint where your agenda should be > Insert > Zoom > Summary Zoom, then tick which slides should be section headers, ideally format all section header slides to be similar like in the screenshot shown:
Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license

Image generation & enhancement tools (Unavailable in Copilot)

One of the most useful use cases of AI in apps that I have personally seen comes with AI image manipulation, in particular Canva’s six AI enhancement tools.

  1. Magic edit: Type a prompt to replaces certain aspects of an image in Canva free. Generative Fill is Adobe Express’s name for the free feature.
  2. Magic expand: Generates additional parts of an image in Canva pro (also in Adobe)
Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license
  1. Magic grab text: Edit text contained within an image, Canva pro does its best to replicate the font, size, colour and angle of the text
Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license
  1. Magic eraser: Select aspects of a picture you would like removed with Canva Pro, Adobe Express Premium or Microsoft Designer for free
  2. Magic grab: Grab and move certain elements in the foreground of an image
Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license
  1. Background remover: Keep the foreground and remove the rest. Easiest through remove.bg which doesn’t require sign in. Adobe Express Free can also remove the background, Microsoft Designer can remove or blur the background, whilst Canva pro can remove photo and video backgrounds.
Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license
  1. Create an AI image: Microsoft 365 Copilot cannot yet do this, but can be done via Bing Copilot, Canva (which can generate videos too), Microsoft Designer, Google Slides as well as more sophisticated paid specialist services such as DALL-E, Midjourney, Adobe Express free and more.
  2. Text prompt to text effects: Type out text effects and Adobe Express will create the editable graphics for free, but enhancements are in the Premium version.

The Abode suite of products has done wonders with incorporating other AI into its applications for image enhancement and otherwise, but many are pricey. One free tool is Adobe Podcast which can extract voice from background noise.

Copilot in Excel Copilot in PowerPoint (Available in Copilot for Microsoft 365 and Copilot Pro)

At the time of writing, Excel’s Copilot is in preview version only so features may change before wide release. Copilot requires data to be set up using the rarely known “Format as Table” feature for a file saved on SharePoint or OneDrive. This video shows Copilot and alternatives.

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  1. Add a formula column to a Table based on a prompt: Even a seasoned veteran gets confused with where to put , or “ or () in nested IF formulas or otherwise. Copilot can generate Excel formulas in a Table, but Chat GPT or Bing Copilot can generate formulas for any cells (which need to be pasted & cell references edited).
  2. Highlight cells with “David” in red: Using Home > Conditional formatting > Highlight cell rules > Text that contains has allowed this functionality for decades, but Microsoft 365 Copilot converts this from a prompt. At the time of writing, Copilot doesn’t do many actions, makes many mistakes and isn’t able to write a formula for a custom rule (such as highlight the row if column B is above 50), but Chat GPT and Bing Copilot can generate these formulas to paste into the “New rule” dialog.
Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license
  1. Identify trends and analyse from a prompt: Copilot seems to be merely a refreshed UI of the 5-year-old “Analyze data” feature on Excel’s home tab or Explore on Google Sheets’ Tools tab. Copilot will over time take advantage of large language models for more advanced analysis than Analyze data, but at the time of writing Analyze data seems to be more powerful (as it works on non-Tables).
  2. Create charts from a prompt: Once again, Excel’s “Analyze data” and Sheets’ “Explore” features allows you to ask a question about your data such as “create a bar chart of sales by city” or “what are total sales for August.” GPT 4’s Advanced data analysis can go a little further cleaning up poorly presented data first (if clean up steps are simple) whilst Excel’s Copilot can generate a written summary.
Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license
  1. Filter, sort & format commands via prompt: Copilot can bold text and do a few more commands as well as simple filtering and sorting.

Copilot in Word Copilot in PowerPoint (Available in Copilot for Microsoft 365 and Copilot Pro)

  1. Generate doc from prompt: Copilot, Canva pro, Google Docs all have this built in. Copilot can also generate from existing cloud documents or even from emails/Teams chats, whilst GPT4 can reference documents uploaded with the prompt.
Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license
  1. Rewrite or reformat text: Select text and get options on right click with Copilot or the pop up on Google Docs and Cava Pro. All apps can rewrite (with a specified tone if asked), but Copilot can visualise in a table, whilst Google Docs and Canva can elaborate, summarise or bulletise the selected text.
Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license
  1. Summarise a document & ask questions: Copilot and Canva can summarise in a similar way to the presentation covered earlier. Copilot, similarly to GPT4 for an uploaded document allow you to ask specific questions such as “which target audience is this aimed at” or “what are the action points listed”.
  2. Reword according to your brand voice: Unavailable in Copilot, Canva pro allows you to train your brand voice under Brand Hub e.g. “playful cosmetics aimed at females aged 15-20 in central Europe.”
  3. Translate entire docs, presentations or designs: Canva’s Magic Switch can use AI to translate into virtually any language and resizes aspects to make the text not overlap certain key aspects of a design etc. Unavailable in Copilot for now.

Copilot in Outlook (Available in Copilot for Microsoft 365 and Copilot Pro)

Out of all the apps, Outlook’s features are the ones which are the hardest to replicate without Copilot. Note that not all of these are available right now but are officially coming soon. Copilot is available on Outlook Online and Mobile, but license holders must be using the new Outlook experience to access Copilot on Outlook Desktop.

  1. Triage your inbox: Click Next… to go through your most important unread emails
  2. Draft emails: Copilot can draft based on a prompt; you can also specify a tone.
  3. Coaching with Copilot: Turn this on to train it with your writing style and get tips on how to change a tone or clarity.
  4. Summarise this email thread: click at the top of an email.
Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license

Aspects available in Copilot for Microsoft 365 but not Copilot Pro

Copilot in Teams

Copilot is Teams is very useful for those attending many meetings

  1. Generate summary meeting notes & ask questions: Copilot can generate brief notes and allows you to ask questions such as “what tasks do I need to do” or “when is the proposal deadline”, or “who spoke the most in the meeting” or “what were the pros and cons discussed to launch next week in a table”. If you hover over the reference there is a useful pop up with the wording used in the meeting. Non-Copilot users can replicate this by uploading the meeting transcript to GPT4, although results are less slick. This incredibly useful feature works well but in both cases, you must turn on meeting transcription.Draft emails: Copilot can draft based on a prompt; you can also specify a tone.
Microsoft 365 Copilot or get the features without the pricey license
  1. Follow a meeting: If you’re unable to attend a meeting, Copilot can join and give you the meeting notes, tasks etc.
  2. Summarise what’s happened so far in a meeting: Copilot can catch you up if you join a meeting late, not available with Chat GPT.

Other meeting apps such as Zoom and Google Meet have also introduced Copilot like functionality to their meetings as well as live translations. Translations (plus meeting templates and other aspects summarised in my blog post here) are included in the Teams Premium add on license but not the standard Copilot license.

Copilot in other Microsoft 365 apps

  1. Microsoft 365 chat allows you to ask questions based on all of the data you have access to, documents, emails, Teams chats. Available on a browser or via Teams, you could ask things like “summarise what happened with client ABC in Q4” or “tell me the status on all my proposals in March” or “What’s the latest from Jacob”.
  2. Draft and summarise in Loop and OneNote: These two features work in the same way as they do in Word, they should fully roll out soon.
  3. Create and ask in Planner: Create lists or ask questions such as “who has the most tasks,” this also should be available soon.

Comparing functionality in a table

This table below contains the aforementioned aspects plus others which are officially coming soon for Copilot but don’t seem to be available at the time of writing.

App Task
M365
Copilot

Manual
alternatives
in non-
Copilot MS
Office

Chat GPT* or
GPT 4 for
£1/ month
Canva free*
or
£100/year
Other
Excel

Identify trends
in a table

Type prompt
Excel: Home tab
> Analyze data
Upload file >
Advanced Data
analysis

Google Sheets
Tools >
Explore
Excel
Create
charts from a
prompt
Type prompt Excel: Home tab
> Analyze data
Upload file >
Advanced Data
analysis
  Google Sheets
Tools >
Explore
Excel Ask a
question about
your data
Type prompt Excel: Home tab
> Analyze data,
type question
Upload file >
Advanced Data
analysis

Google Sheets
Tools >
Explore
Excel
Give a
paragraph
summarising
a table
Type prompt Power BI: Smart
narrative visuals
Upload file >
Advanced Data
analysis


Excel
Recolour
cells in a
table if…
Type prompt
Excel: Home tab
> Conditional
formatting >
Colour scales


Google
Sheets:
Format >
Conditional
formatting

Excel
Create a heat
map in a
group of cells
in a table
Type prompt
Excel: Home tab
> Conditional
formatting >
Colour scales


Google
Sheets:
Format >
Conditional
formatting
Excel
Type in
Python code
Announced
but not yet
available
Excel: Formula
tab > Python
(available in Beta
only)
Ask Chat GPT
for the code*
 
Excel
Build a
scenario
model
Announced
but not yet
available
Data > What if
analysis >
Scenario
manager can do
certain things



Excel
Make text
bold and
basic format
based on
prompt
Type prompt
Various items on
home tab

  Google Sheets
manual
Excel
Filter or sort
data based
on prompt
Type prompt Home tab > Sort
and filter



Power
Point
Organise into
sections and
add an
agenda slide
Type prompt

PowerPoint
Desktop: Insert >
Zoom>
Summary Zoom


None.
Summary
Zoom feature
doesn't exist

Power
Point
Summarise a
presentation
Type prompt

Upload file
then paste
output
Magic Switch
(top left) >
Transform >
Summarise

Power
Point
Generate a
presentation
from a
prompt
Type prompt
PowerPoint
Desktop: Insert >
Zoom >
Summary Zoom

Type 5+ words
in search bar
on top left

Power
Point
Add slide
based on a
prompt
Type prompt


Same as
above, but pick
only 1

Power
Point
Convert
Word doc to
PowerPoint
Type prompt
Word Online. File
> Export > to
PowerPoint
Upload file
then paste
output slide by
slide
Canva doc >
Conert (top
right)

Power
Point
PowerPoint
file to Word
Type prompt


Magic Switch
(top left) >
Transform > All
text

Power
Point
Translate a
page, design,
presentation
Unavailable


Magic Switch
(top left) >
Translate

Power
Point
Auto animate
with different
styles for
each object
Type prompt


Animate >
Magic animate

Power
Point
Add
organisational
brand
assets
Will be
available
soon


Save and
incorporate
brand assets
(but not via
prompt)

Power
Point
Generate
talking
points/speaker
notes
Type prompt

Upload file
then paste
output


Power
Point
Make a slide
less wordy
Type prompt

Paste text in &
out*


Power
Point
What is an
appropriate
text size
Type prompt

Look up on
chat GPT*


Images
Background
remover
Unavailable
MS Designer is
good, PPT's built
in one is too
simple
Edit image >
BG remover
Adobe Express
(Free) is good
remove.bg is 
the strongest
Images
Create an AI
image (using
DALLE 3)
Coming soon
MS Paint,
Designer

Elements >
Create your
own photo or
video*
Bing Copilot,
Google Docs,
Adobe Express
Images
Replace
components
in a photo
with text
prompt
Unavailable

  Edit image >
Magic edit*
Edit image>
Generative fill
in Adobe
Express
Images
Remove/move
aspects of
a photo
Unavailable


Edit image >
Magic eraser,
magic grab

Images
Expand a
photo in a
given
direction
Unavailable


Edit image >
Magic expand
Generative
Expand is in
Adobe
Photoshop
Word
Rewrite
paragraph
Type prompt
and get 3
options or
visualise in
table


Right click and
choose, but
can also
expand or
shorten text,
and bulletise

Currently free
in Google Docs
Word,
One
Note,
Loop
Summarise
Type prompt

Paste text into
chat box* or
upload
document
Right click >
Summarise
Currently free
in Google Docs
Word,
One
Note,
Loop,
Outlook
Draft based on
a prompt
Type prompt

The main use
case of free
chat GPT* and
Bing Copilot
Magic write will
write out based
on a prompt
Currently free
in Google Docs
Outlook
Coach with
writing style

Home tab >
Copilot >
Coach





Outlook
Summarise
email thread
Click
Summarise

 

Teams
Generate
meeting notes
Home >
Summarise

Upload
transcription or
paste in then ask


Teams
Ask question
from meeting
transcript

Go to
Meeting >
Recap >
Copilot &
type prompt


Upload
transcription or
paste in then
ask


Teams
Follow a
meeting you
can't attend
Will be
available
soon




Teams
Catch up on
meeting so
far
Type in
Copilot side
bar




Various
Ask about any
of your data in
Microsoft 365
chat
In Teams or
on M365
online type
the prompt




Various
Brand voice
Unavailable


Specify e.g.
"relaxed tone
for 15-25 females",
then reword
something to
match.

   These features are available in Copilot for Microsoft 365 but not in Copilot Pro packages
Various

Ask about
any of your
data in
Microsoft
365 chat

In Teams or
on M365
online type
the prompt
       
Teams Generate
meeting
notes
Home>
Summarize
  Upload
transcription or
paste in then
ask
   
Teams

Ask question
from meeting
transcript

Go to meeting>
Recap>
Copilot &
type prompt
  Upload
transcription or
paste in then
ask
   
Teams Follow a 
meeting you
can't attend
Will be
available
soon
       
Teams Catch up on
meeting so
far
         

In summary, I personally don’t feel as though Copilot for Microsoft 365 is game changing in its current state, it's most useful non-replicable features are triaging an Outlook inbox and sifting through your data with Microsoft 365 chat, various other aspects look great in demos but have few use cases. The majority of Copilot’s actions can be imitated via other apps such as summarising meeting notes, drafting documents from a prompt. I will continue to use Canva’s image alteration tools more than Copilot for the meantime. Over time, Copilot will undoubtably become more useful though, especially once its functionality is extended, it is offered to more users and the Large Language Model which underpin it is given more and more data.

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