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Microsoft adds AI-powered deep research tools to Copilot
Microsoft is introducing a “deep research” AI-powered tool in Microsoft 365 Copilot, its AI chatbot app. This new feature aims to aid researchers and professionals in performing complex analysis and generating reports.
In order to make this possible, the company has combined OpenAI’s deep research model with advanced orchestration and deep search capabilities. As a result, Researcher is capable of analyzing tasks such as developing a go-to-market strategy and creating a quarterly report for a client.
Another AI-powered tool Microsoft is launching, called Analyst, utilizes OpenAI’s o3-mini reasoning model and has been optimized to perform advanced data analysis. This tool progresses through problems iteratively, refining its “thinking” and providing detailed answers to queries. Furthermore, it can run the programming language Python to tackle complex data queries and expose its “work” for inspection.
Microsoft’s deep research tools have a unique advantage over competitors as they can access work data in addition to the worldwide web. For instance, Researcher can tap third-party data connectors to draw on data from AI “agents,” tools, and apps like Confluence, ServiceNow, and Salesforce.
However, ensuring that these tools don’t hallucinate or make incorrect conclusions remains a significant challenge. Models such as o3-mini and deep research are not perfect; they sometimes mis-cite work, draw incorrect conclusions, and pull from dubious public websites to inform their reasoning.
Microsoft is launching its Frontier program, which will provide Microsoft 365 Copilot customers with access to Researcher and Analyst starting in April. Customers who enroll in the Frontier program will be among the first to gain access to these experimental features.
Source: https://techcrunch.com/2025/03/25/microsoft-adds-ai-powered-deep-research-tools-to-copilot/
