Microsoft is expanding the AI models powering Microsoft 365 Copilot by adding Anthropic models alongside OpenAI’s latest models. This integration offers customers flexibility to choose between OpenAI and Anthropic models, specifically Claude Sonnet 4 and Claude Opus 4.1, enhancing AI innovation tailored for business needs.
Integration of Anthropic Models in Microsoft 365 Copilot
Anthropic models are now available in two key areas:
Researcher Agent: This reasoning agent supports complex, multistep research by analyzing web data, trusted third-party sources, and user work content such as emails, chats, meetings, and files. Users can choose between OpenAI’s deep reasoning models or Anthropic’s Claude Opus 4.1 to power detailed tasks like go-to-market strategies, product trend analysis, and quarterly reports.
Copilot Studio: Users can select Claude Sonnet 4 and Claude Opus 4.1 models to create and customize enterprise-grade agents for deep reasoning, workflow automation, and flexible tasks. Copilot Studio supports multiagent systems and prompt tools, allowing mixing of models from Anthropic, OpenAI, or the Azure Model Catalog for specialized tasks.
User Experience and Availability
Customers who opt in can easily switch between OpenAI and Anthropic models within Researcher. In Copilot Studio, a drop-down menu simplifies model selection without needing to switch platforms.
The rollout begins today through the Frontier Program for Microsoft 365 Copilot-licensed customers. Anthropic models are hosted outside Microsoft-managed environments and governed by Anthropic’s Terms of Service. Admins can enable access via the Microsoft 365 admin center.
Commitment and Future Outlook
Microsoft emphasizes its commitment to rapid AI model innovation to empower users and transform business processes with AI agents. More powerful experiences using Anthropic models in Microsoft 365 Copilot are expected to follow.
About Charles Lamanna
Charles Lamanna, President of Business & Industry Copilot, leads teams responsible for developing intelligent business applications and low-code platforms with generative AI across Microsoft Dynamics 365, Power Platform, Copilot Studio, and related products. These include AI-powered business applications, conversational AI, RPA, CRM, and ERP solutions.
Microsoft 365 Copilot is available on desktop and mobile, delivering AI-powered productivity tools wherever users go.
