Microsoft Copilot Home, Code and Autopilot Explained

Navy Solv Systems title card reading 'Copilot Home, Code and Autopilot' with a laptop and cloud motif.

In Short: Microsoft Copilot Is Now Home, Code and Autopilot

On 25 September 2026 Jared Spataro introduced "the new Copilot", built around three parts: Home, Code and Autopilot. Home is where Chat and Cowork live together. Code builds apps and automations from a description. Autopilot is an agent that keeps working in the background with its own identity. Underneath them sit two pieces of plumbing: a plugin registry for skills, connectors and agents, and Copilot Managed Runtime for hosting what people build.

This post explains what each part of Microsoft Copilot Home, Code and Autopilot does, where each one stands as of 8 October 2026, and how it is paid for. The short version: none of the three is generally available yet. Code and Autopilot run on Copilot Credits rather than the per-user licence, and the controls you set now decide how the rollout goes.

Home: Chat and Cowork in One Place

Microsoft describes Home as "your new starting point in Copilot, where Chat and Cowork come together in one place". Chat is for quick questions, lookups and drafts. Cowork is for work you hand off, running end to end and returning a finished result - the model we described in what Copilot Cowork means for enterprise AI.

Two additions sit around Home. Office in Copilot brings Word, Excel and PowerPoint into the Copilot experience, so Copilot creates or updates a real, editable document, workbook or deck that stays in sync with the Office apps. Today is described as a "proactive, personalized command center across mail, calendar, Teams threads, meetings and tasks". Microsoft said Today would enter private preview in October 2026 in Copilot, with Outlook and Teams to follow.

Microsoft said Home would "start rolling out in our Frontier program in the coming weeks". Frontier is Microsoft's early-access programme, so treat Home as something a pilot group sees first, not the whole organisation.

Code: Apps and Dashboards From a Prompt

Code is the part that matters most to data and IT teams. Microsoft's description: "Describe an app, tracker, dashboard, automation or workflow in natural language, and Copilot chooses an approach and builds it." It is "powered by the same underlying technology as GitHub Copilot" and runs in a sandboxed environment.

The apps need somewhere to run. Copilot Managed Runtime is the hosting infrastructure "that lets code run safely right inside your company's Microsoft 365 environment", governed by IT, so people can share an app, connect it to live data and open it from anywhere. Microsoft says the same foundation serves apps built in Cowork, Code and Copilot Studio, and that it is "now in preview".

For Power BI teams this needs some thought. Microsoft says Fabric IQ is generally available in Chat and Cowork, bringing context from "20+ million semantic models in Power BI" into Copilot, with Code integration "coming through the Frontier program soon". Once that lands, anyone with Code could build a dashboard over your semantic models without opening Power BI. That is useful if the models are sound and risky if they are not, which is why controlling what Microsoft 365 Copilot can see in Power BI and preparing your semantic model for AI come before switching Code on.

On timing, Spataro's post says "Code is rolling out to Frontier at the end of the month, with broad availability in the coming weeks", and that it "will be in preview for Microsoft 365 Premium and Pro subscribers later this year".

Autopilot: The Agent That Keeps Working

Autopilot was "previously called Scout". Microsoft calls it "your digital teammate": you give it a name, a role and a goal, and it goes to work - "watching channels, following up on threads, running recurring work and picking a project back up days later, without waiting for a prompt". Microsoft's example is running a full supplier review, from building the schedule and workback plan to handling prep, meetings and follow-ups. It shows up in Teams, Outlook, chats, channels and documents.

Microsoft's June 2026 post introducing Scout explains the governance. "Every agent operates under its own governed Entra identity, not a shared, anonymous service account", so its work is attributable to a known actor in your directory. Agents "can only reach the resources and destinations you've approved", and sensitive actions can require a human to sign off. At the time, access required "Frontier enrollment, Intune policy configuration, and an opt-in attestation".

On 25 September Microsoft said "Autopilot is expanding to private preview at the end of the month". This is the most autonomous of the three and the furthest from general availability. If you have not yet treated agents as identities with owners and access reviews, our guide to governing AI agents with Entra Agent ID is the place to start.

The Plumbing: Plugin Registry and Managed Runtime

The plugin registry, announced on 30 September, is the governance layer you will touch first. A plugin packages skills, connectors and agents, and the registry covers Home (Chat and Cowork), Code, Autopilot, Word, Excel, PowerPoint and SharePoint. Microsoft says it will later support Copilot Studio, GitHub Copilot and Microsoft Foundry. In the Microsoft 365 admin center, under Agents and then Tools in the Agent 365 experience, admins can review plugins, enable or disable them, and block or assign them to users or groups. Microsoft says more than 100 plugins are already available. The Plugins page in Copilot replaces the old Agents page.

The registry was "rolling out now" on 30 September. Spataro's post says it will be "generally available across surfaces in the coming weeks". Decide your approval policy before your users find the Plugins menu.

Where Everything Stands on 8 October 2026

Home - rolling out to the Frontier programme "in the coming weeks" (as of 25 September)
Code - rolling out to Frontier from the end of September, broad availability "in the coming weeks", preview for Microsoft 365 Premium and Pro subscribers later this year
Autopilot - private preview from the end of September
Today - private preview in October
Copilot Managed Runtime - preview
Plugin registry - rolling out, generally available across surfaces "in the coming weeks"
Fabric IQ in Chat and Cowork - generally available. Code integration coming through Frontier
@Copilot in Teams channels, group chats and meetings - private preview by the end of September

Microsoft's dates are tentative, so check the Microsoft Copilot release notes before you promise anything to users. Microsoft Ignite, from 17 to 20 November, is the obvious place for the next status update - see our Microsoft Ignite 2026 preview.

What It Costs

Microsoft Learn splits Copilot work in two. Everyday AI sits on the per-user licence. Advanced AI - "Complex, long-running agentic work you hand off - such as with Cowork, Code, Autopilots, or the latest frontier models" - runs on usage-based billing. In Learn's words, "UBB experiences consume Copilot Credits and require a USL for access", so Code and Autopilot cost credits on top of the licence, not instead of it.

Learn also states that "Admins must set up a billing policy before a user can use AI experiences that require usage-based billing." That is your control point. We set out the meters, pack prices and budgeting approach in Microsoft Copilot pricing and Copilot Credits. If you are on Copilot Business, read about the usage-based billing default for Copilot Business too.

What to Do First

Pick a Frontier pilot group. A small group with a real use case for Code or Cowork, not the whole tenant
Set a capped billing policy for that group before anyone opens Code
Agree a plugin approval policy in the admin center: who requests, who approves, what is blocked by default
Fix the data before Code reaches it. Check which semantic models Copilot can use and make sure they are governed and labelled
Treat Autopilot like a new starter. Named owner, least-privilege access, an Entra identity you review, and sign-off on sensitive actions

Where Solv Systems Comes In

We help organisations get the controls in place before the new Copilot reaches users: pilot design, spending and plugin policies, agent identity and access, and the Fabric and Power BI groundwork that makes Copilot's answers trustworthy. Read more about our AI automation and agent services.

Sources and Further Reading

Frequently asked

They are the three parts of the new Copilot Microsoft introduced on 25 September 2026. Home brings Chat and Cowork together as the starting point. Code builds apps, trackers, dashboards and automations from a natural-language description. Autopilot is an always-on agent you give a name, a role and a goal, which keeps working without waiting for a prompt.

No. Microsoft said on 25 September 2026 that Autopilot, previously called Scout, was expanding to private preview at the end of that month. When Microsoft announced Scout in June 2026, access required Frontier enrolment, Intune policy configuration and an opt-in attestation.

Not yet. Microsoft said Code would roll out to the Frontier programme at the end of September, with broad availability in the coming weeks, and would be in preview for Microsoft 365 Premium and Pro subscribers later in 2026. Code also runs on usage-based billing, so an admin must set up a billing policy before users can run it.

Yes. Microsoft Learn lists Cowork, Code and Autopilot under usage-based billing, which consumes Copilot Credits and also requires the per-user Copilot licence for access. Admins must set up a billing policy before users can use these experiences.

A single catalogue of Microsoft, partner and custom plugins - packages of skills, connectors and agents - that work across Home, Code, Autopilot, Word, Excel, PowerPoint and SharePoint. Admins approve, assign or block plugins in the Microsoft 365 admin center under Agents, then Tools. Microsoft said it was rolling out on 30 September 2026.

Through Fabric IQ, which Microsoft says is generally available in Copilot Chat and Cowork and brings context from Power BI semantic models into Copilot. Microsoft says integration with Code is coming through the Frontier programme soon. The quality of the answers depends on how well your semantic models are built and governed.