Who can create and use agents?
With the introduction of Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat, the entire workforce of every Microsoft 365 organization can use agents in Microsoft 365 Copilot. Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat is an AI chat that's available at no extra cost with Microsoft 365. It serves as the default chat experience for every organization that deploys Microsoft 365. Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat includes web grounding, the latest large language models, Copilot Pages, IT controls, and enterprise-grade privacy and security.
Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat is a powerful on-ramp for everyone in an organization to build the AI habit. However, organizations that want to take their Copilot experience to the next level can purchase a Microsoft 365 Copilot plan for all or selected members of their workforce.
Microsoft 365 Copilot remains Microsoft's premier personal AI assistant for work, encompassing all features of Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat and more. When a user is assigned a Microsoft 365 Copilot license, Copilot Chat becomes even more powerful. It utilizes the company's Microsoft 365 data through Microsoft Graph, integrates directly with Microsoft 365 apps, and utilizes advanced measurement and management tools.
Agents in Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat and Microsoft 365 Copilot
Both Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat and Microsoft 365 Copilot enable users to create Copilot Chat and SharePoint agents. Both plans allow agents to be grounded in Web data. However, the ability for agents to be grounded in Work data is one of the key differences between the two plans.
Note
Work data is the data in your Microsoft 365 tenant that’s grounded in Microsoft Graph, including files stored in SharePoint and external data synched through Graph connectors. It doesn’t include personal Graph data such as emails and chats. Grounding your chat responses in Work data is also referred to as tenant Graph grounding.
Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat. For organizations that don’t purchase a Microsoft 365 Copilot subscription, all their users are automatically covered under the Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat plan. This plan is often referred to as “Copilot for all.” By default, the Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat plan only accesses Web content when generating its responses; it doesn’t access Work data (tenant Graph grounding). However, a company with the Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat plan can still access Work data if it satisfies the following requirements:
- The company purchases a pay-as-you-go (metered) Copilot billing plan.
- The company enables tenant Graph grounding in Copilot Studio. If this feature is turned on, then each time an agent responds with a generative answer, it utilizes knowledge from the tenant Graph, and tenant Graph grounding for messages is billed. Tenant Graph grounding for messages costs 30 messages for each knowledge retrieval.
Microsoft 365 Copilot. For organizations that purchase a Microsoft 365 Copilot subscription, their licensed users can utilize either Web or Work-grounded data in Copilot Chat. A Web/Work toggle switch is available on the Copilot Chat page that enables licensed users to decide whether Copilot Chat should use Work or Web content when generating its responses. Users without a Microsoft 365 Copilot license can still utilize Work data if their organization has a pay-as-you-go (metered) billing plan, and the company enables tenant Graph grounding in Copilot Studio, similar to organizations with a Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat plan.
Keep in mind that a company can assign Microsoft 365 Copilot licenses to some users while also using the pay-as-you-go model for other users. For example, a company might assign Microsoft 365 Copilot licenses to its core users who need full access to Copilot features. At the same time, the company might apply its pay-as-you-go billing plan to other users who don’t have a Microsoft 365 Copilot license, but who still need to use certain Copilot features, such tenant Graph grounding. The company would get charged for these users based on their usage.
Agents in SharePoint
The ability for a user to create and use agents on a SharePoint site depends on whether the user is a site member or a site visitor.
- Site members. Site members can create and use agents on a SharePoint site if they're assigned Edit permission or higher for the site. This requirement enables them to develop their own agents that extend the functionality of the site. It also allows them to create, edit, and delete documents, lists, and libraries within the site. They can also participate in discussions, create and modify pages, and perform various other activities based on the permissions granted to them.
- Site visitors. These users generally have Read-only permission for a site. This permission level means they can view content, but they can't create, edit, or delete any content on the site. Site visitors with Read-only permission can use agents that are shared with them, but they can't create or edit these agents. The SharePoint agent approval process allows other site members or visitors to access approved agents. The person who creates an agent can use it without approval, but approval is required to make the agent available for other site users.
External users and SharePoint agents
An external user is an individual who isn't part of an organization but is granted access to one or more of the company's SharePoint sites. Since they can access selected SharePoint sites, let's examine whether they can also create and use agents for those sites.
To begin with, let's examine who external users are. External users can include vendors, partners, clients, or customers. They typically authenticate using their own credentials from another organization or a personal Microsoft account. External users can collaborate on documents and content stored in SharePoint Online, and their access is managed through the SharePoint's external sharing feature.
You can identify an external user by their email address, which isn't part of your organization's domain. External users can be granted various levels of access, similar to internal employees. External users can be given permissions ranging from Read-only to Full Control, depending on what the site owner or admin decides.
An external user can be granted different levels of access to a SharePoint site. A site owner or admin can also assign them as a site member. To assign an external user as a site member, the site owner or admin can add the external user's email address to the site's members group. This process is similar to adding internal users as site members.
If an external user isn't explicitly assigned as a site member, they typically default to being considered a site visitor with "Read" permissions, similar to internal employees.
Important
Since an external user is assigned as either a site member or site visitor, the rules involving agent access for site members and visitors that were outlined earlier apply to them as well, just like any other site member or site visitor.
Some organizations also treat selected external users as internal employees. They do so by assigning one of the company's Microsoft 365 licenses and Microsoft 365 Copilot licenses to these external users. While this isn't a common practice, it does happen in specific scenarios where external collaborators or partners must have the same capabilities as internal employees to contribute effectively to a project.
Here are a few scenarios in which an organization might assign an external user one of its Microsoft 365 and Microsoft 365 Copilot licenses to an external user:
- External consultants. Companies often hire external consultants or contractors to work closely with internal teams on specific projects. In these situations, a company might assign Copilot licenses to these external workers so they can create and use agents in SharePoint. Doing so ensures they have the necessary tools to collaborate and contribute effectively.
- Joint ventures. In cases where two or more companies are working together on a joint venture, they might assign Copilot licenses to key personnel from each organization. Doing so allows all parties to have equal access to the tools and capabilities needed for the project.
- Long-term partnerships. For long-term partnerships where external partners are deeply integrated into the company's workflows, assigning Copilot licenses can help streamline collaboration. It can also ensure that external partners can fully participate in the creation and use of agents.
- Special projects. For special projects that require extensive collaboration with external stakeholders, companies might assign Copilot licenses to ensure that all participants have the necessary capabilities to contribute effectively.
These scenarios highlight the flexibility of the Copilot licensing model, which allows organizations to extend the capabilities of their internal tools and SharePoint agents to external collaborators when needed.