Copilot in Microsoft Power Platform: Unlocking Innovation with AI

An ever-evolving field, software development sees the emergence of new technologies all the time. Of late, low-code no-code development platforms have gained prominence, representing a significant share of contemporary software development- 77% of the organizations are reportedly using it. Of these platforms, the Power Platform suite stands out, offering a myriad of benefits over traditional software development including accelerated development cycles, reduced IT costs and enhanced collaboration between business and IT users.

And while businesses are waking up to the possibilities of low-code, Microsoft has rolled out an AI-powered tool that’s poised to further change the way software applications are developed-Copilot. Whether you want to create a top-notch application, a virtual assistant, or powerful workflows, Copilot gets you covered.

If you want to understand how Copilot works and how you can leverage it effectively for your business, keep reading.

So, What is Copilot in Power Platform?

An AI-powered assistant created by Microsoft, Copilot helps you automate and simplify day-to-day tasks. Copilot can accomplish different goals, depending on the platform you integrate it with. In Power Platform, Copilot combines the capabilities of large language models with the data available in Microsoft apps to supercharge your productivity. It enables you to build applications, create reports, generate workflows, and spin up chatbots-all using natural language prompts.

For instance, if you want to develop an application for monitoring employee expenses, you can start with a simple prompt, “Create an expense tracking app that allows my employees to submit and track their expenses.”

Copilot will generate a Dataverse table as a foundation for you to get you started. You can edit this table using the suggestions provided (e.g. adding columns or refreshing data). Copilot also allows you to ask questions related to your data such as, “Which category has the highest expenses”.

As you customize the table structure, including forms, buttons, and data types, Copilot adapts in real-time. Once you're satisfied with your Dataverse table, Copilot takes it a step further by transforming it into a fully functional application, with all the necessary backend logic. This way, Copilot allows you to be more productive, freeing up your time for strategic, higher-value work.

How to Leverage Copilot in Power Platform?

As discussed above, Copilot can be seamlessly integrated across the entire Power Platform suite- Power Apps, Power Automate, Power Virtual Agents, Power BI, and Power Pages. The AI capabilities of Copilot not only enhance the individual components of Power Platform but also allow for the creation of a cohesive, intelligent ecosystem that empowers users to do more with less effort.

Copilot and Power Apps - Users can input natural language prompts describing the kind of application they want, and Copilot will generate a complete application with a user interface, backend logic and data tables. For instance, you can ask Copilot to “Build an application to streamline and automate leave submission and approval”. With Copilot, users can also refine these applications using the platform’s AI-powered capabilities. This means you can add more screens, customize interfaces, configure navigation, etc. in the existing application.
Copilot and Power Automate - With Copilot in Power Automate, users can boost business efficiency by automating time-intensive, cumbersome tasks. You can use conversational language to generate workflows that speed up business processes. You can also fine-tune these processes simply by asking questions and seeking guidance.
Copilot and Power Pages - Integrating Copilot with Power Pages enables you to quickly build secure and scalable business websites. Users can provide natural language inputs to build forms, design intuitive chatbots, and generate text. Copilot can automatically create tables in the Microsoft Dataverse when the user specifies the form type. Fields can also be adjusted to generate corresponding forms.
Copilot and Power BI - The combination of Copilot and Power BI helps organizations harness the potential of large language models (LLMs) to derive maximum value from their data. Copilot can interpret natural language requests to create sophisticated, tailored visualizations. It can also generate comprehensive reports based on simple prompts, reducing the time and effort required for report creation. Its AI can also produce insightful summaries of complex data sets, paving the way for smarter decision-making.
Copilot and Power Virtual Agents - When integrated with Power Virtual Agents, Copilot allows users to rapidly build intuitive chatbots for websites. Powered by the GPT technology, these chatbots can generate contextual responses to user queries. Copilot’s powerful AI helps users create topics from a simple description including questions, messages, and triggers. It can also help fine-tune content in an existing topic, such as additional questions or messaging variations.

How Can Organizations Unlock the Full Potential of Power Platform with Copilot Integration?

Here are some of the game-changing benefits of using Copilot in Power Platform:

Agility - With a plethora of built-in components, Copilot in Power Platform enables the development of applications, bots, and workflows quickly and with fewer errors. Copilot can instantly understand users’ instructions to generate code snippets that pave the way for feature-rich prototypes as well as fully functional applications.
Hassle-Free Integration - Copilot can be seamlessly integrated with Microsoft 365 as well as Power Apps, Power Automate, Power BI, and other products from the Microsoft suite to build end-to-end solutions that speed up innovation and growth.
Security and Compliance - Copilot has been built on Azure, which is why it comes with enterprise-grade security features and adheres to Microsoft’s rigorous security standards. This keeps your business data safe and secure.
Streamlined Workflows - Copilot helps generate automated workflows that enable you to optimize operations, enhance efficiency and focus on high-value activities that drive business growth.
Accurate Insights - Copilot’s generative AI allows you to extract valuable insights from your business data within no time. Once you specify your requirements, Copilot pulls relevant data to generate reports to help you with informed decision-making.

How can Copilot in Power Platform Transform Industries?

Below are some of the compelling use cases of Copilot in Power Platform:

Retail and eCommerce - Retail is a fiercely competitive domain where time-to-market remains critical. Copilot addresses the challenge by enabling retailers to rapidly develop and launch ecommerce applications and promptly meet customer demands. Copilot can be used along with Power Automate to streamline critical retail processes such as stock management and inventory tracking. This can help retailers remain on top of their stock levels and minimize incidences of overstocking or understocking.
Healthcare - The healthcare industry calls for precision and lightning-fast decision-making and personalized service. Copilot can aid in the creation of patient management systems that allow medical professionals to seamlessly access and update patient data. Also, Copilot can also play a vital role in creating intelligent virtual assistants that help schedule appointments and provide accurate, timely responses to patient queries.
Manufacturing - Copilot can help build quality control applications that can identify and report defects in real time and notify the concerned teams of any bottlenecks, allowing the production process to run smoothly. Additionally, Copilot can reinforce the features of Power BI, so that businesses can gain insights into manufacturing processes, minimize errors, and boost operational efficiency.
Educational Services - Educational institutions can leverage Power Platform integrated with Copilot to create personalized learning management systems that facilitate seamless communication between students and teachers, evaluate student performance, and share timely feedback. Copilot in Power Platform can handle administrative tasks such as attendance tracking, enabling instructors to focus on providing high-quality training. Also, Power BI dashboards can offer insights into how students are performing, so that instructors can tailor their teaching methods for improved learning outcomes.

The Final Word

Copilot has emerged as a transformative force, amplifying the capabilities of the Power Platform suite, and changing how businesses approach digital transformation.

Copilot’s built-in components, seamless integration, and adaptive learning capabilities make it an indispensable tool for enhancing productivity, streamlining workflows, and unlocking innovation amidst a growing tech landscape. As Microsoft ramps up its investment in Copilot, we are likely to see pathbreaking developments in the realm of Power Platform.