What It Does
Unlike external AI add-ins or separate applications, this feature is built into Excel itself. By typing =COPILOT(“your prompt”, A2:A100) you can guide Excel to analyze, summarize, or even classify information based on plain English instructions. The formula dynamically updates whenever the underlying data changes, making AI outputs as flexible as any other calculation in your sheet.
For example:
- Sentiment analysis: =COPILOT(“Classify feedback as Positive, Negative, or Neutral”, A2:A100)
- Quick summaries: =COPILOT(“Summarize the sales trends in one sentence”, B2:B200)
- Decision support: Nest the function inside IF() or LAMBDA() to create interactive dashboards or financial models powered by AI reasoning.
Why It Matters
- Native to Excel: Results refresh automatically with your data.
- Natural language prompts: No need for complex formulas if you can explain the task in clear instructions.
- Flexible integration: Combine with existing Excel functions to unlock entirely new workflows.
A Few Caveats
The quality of output depends heavily on the clarity of your prompt. Strong action verbs like “summarize”, “rank”, or “classify” usually deliver better results. And like any AI system, it can make mistakes—so iteration and prompt-refinement remain part of the process.
Availability
The Copilot formula is rolling out now to Microsoft 365 Beta users with a Copilot license, and will also be available on the Excel web app through the Frontier program. A broader release across stable channels is expected in the coming weeks.
#Excel #Microsoft365 #AI #ExcelCopilot #Productivity #DataAnalysis
