Microsoft has unveiled a major overhaul of its Copilot app, including a coding tool and an always-on AI agent, as it seeks to transform the assistant into a one-stop shop for office workers.

The company unveiled "Code", which lets users build apps and dashboards using natural language prompts. The tool is powered by the same technology as GitHub Copilot and will roll out to early-access customers first.

Microsoft is also rolling out "Autopilot", a revamp of the "Scout" AI agent unveiled in June, as an always-on digital coworker. The agent will carry its own identity in the company directory and have specific permissions that users can control.

"I think it's been very hard for many organizations to bring agents into the enterprise because of security, compliance and governance concerns," said Annie Pearl, corporate vice president of Copilot Product.

The company is embedding its Office applications – Word, Excel and PowerPoint – directly within Copilot, allowing users to work on these apps without leaving the AI tool.

Microsoft also unveiled cost-management capabilities so employees can see the costs tied to their AI usage. The overhaul aims to boost adoption as Microsoft competes with AI chatbots such as ChatGPT and Claude.