Connect Project "Sophia" to your data (preview)

[This article is prerelease documentation and is subject to change.]

One of the many benefits of Project Sophia is that you can connect to your business data. Project Sophia supports multiple ways: you can upload files, or connect to an enterprise data source like Dynamics 365 and Dataverse.

Follow these steps to ask a question:

  1. Go to https://projectsophia.microsoft.com.
  2. From the Home screen, select New workspace.
  3. Select Add data, and choose an option.
  4. From the top right, select Domains to optimize responses for your specific area of interest.
  5. Enter your question in the text box and then select Generate.

Uploading files

  1. If you're uploading a file, select the file name and then select Open.
  2. Select Generate or enter your question in the text box and then select Generate.

Your data is analyzed to create a blueprint that provides valuable insights, charts, and actionable steps.

Supported data files

You can upload a PDF (.pdf), CSV (.csv), or Excel (.xls) file. The following limitations apply to file uploads:

  • The maximum supported file size is 10 mb.
  • The maximum number of uploaded files is 5, and maximum total size for all is 30 mb.
  • Encrypted, password-protected, or copyright-managed files aren’t supported.
  • CSV:
    • Data within the file needs to be separated by commas.
  • Excel:
    • Column header in the first row only.
    • No more than 10 tables and maximum 50 columns for each table.
    • Can’t contain merged cells.
    • Elements such as images, charts, and macros can't be processed.
  • PDF:
    • Must contain selectable text. You can test it by trying to highlight text within the PDF. If you can’t select or highlight the text, then it can't be processed.
    • Use original digital documents or PDF that are converted directly from word processors or other digital sources. A scanned PDF doesn't work.
    • If the PDF contains tables, make sure the borders are clearly outlined. Avoid using any contrasting colors to differentiate between rows and columns.

Connecting to a data source

Project "Sophia" allows you to connect to Enterprise data sources. Currently it supports connecting to Dataverse and Dynamics 365 Sales data sources, with more to come in the future. You can establish one connection in a workspace. You can upload files for more context in addition to connecting to a data source.

Important

You need to have an account with the data source to establish a connection with it.

  1. If you're connecting to a data source, follow the instructions in the authentication dialog box.
  2. Select Generate or enter your question in the text box and then select Generate.

Use data from Dataverse

Important

You need a Dataverse account to establish a connection to Dataverse.

You can connect to your business data in Dataverse, which enables you to do rich analysis across your business data estate. This includes any custom apps, data tables, or fields included there.

For a Dataverse connection:

  • Your sign in information for Project "Sophia" is used to connect to Dataverse.
  • If you have access to multiple instances, choose one.
  • If an instance isn't found, then the option to connect to Dataverse won't be available.
  • If Project "Sophia" isn't able to access the data in the instance, it shows an error message.

Similar to other connections, based on the question you ask, Project "Sophia" looks through the data source for the most relevant data to answer the question. Project "Sophia" depends on the metadata available (for example, table and column descriptions) to help identify the relevant data. Currently Dataverse connection can load up to 15 tables. It will keep adding more tables until hitting that limit. Data is aggregated before reading it, and it is limited to 10,000 rows.

Tip

Make sure that custom tables have proper descriptions. The blueprint generated depends on the data found. If no data is found, then Project "Sophia" shows an error and might ask if you can rephrase the question. If you use the AI cursor to ask more questions, Project "Sophia" will consider the data source again to answer it.

Use data from Dynamics 365 Sales

Important

You need to have a Dynamics 365 Sales account to establish a connection with Dynamics 365 Sales.

You can connect to your business data from Dynamics 365 Sales, which enables you to do rich analysis across your business data estate.

For a Dynamics 365 Sales connection:

  • Your sign in information for Project "Sophia" is used to connect to Dynamics 365 Sales.
  • If you have access to multiple instances, choose one.
  • If an instance isn't found, then the option to connect to Dynamics 365 Sales won't be available.
  • If Project "Sophia" isn't able to access the data in the instance, it shows an error message.

Based on the question you ask, Project "Sophia" looks through the data source for the most relevant data to answer the question. Project "Sophia" depends on the metadata available (for example, table and column descriptions) to help identify the relevant data. This connection has same limitations on number of tables and rows as the Dataverse connection. If the logged in user does not have read access to the Sales Hub app in Dynamics 365 Sales deployment, then Project "Sophia" might not show the option to connect to it. In this case, try connecting to it as a Dataverse connection.

Tip

Make sure that custom tables added to Dynamics 365 Sales have proper descriptions. The blueprint generated depends on the data found. If no data is found, then Project "Sophia" shows an error and might ask if you can rephrase the question. If you use the AI cursor to ask more questions, Project "Sophia" will consider the data source again to answer it.

If the user doesn't enter any question, by default, Project "Sophia" answers the question based on core tables in Dynamics 365 Sales, like accounts, opportunities, leads, and more. You can establish one connection in a workspace. Project "Sophia" supports both custom fields and custom tables in Dynamics 365 Sales instances. It's advisable to have proper descriptions to these custom items.