REDMOND — Microsoft unveiled an updated Copilot application featuring Home, Code, and Autopilot tabs. The company also announced new Surface Pro 12-inch (2nd Edition) and Surface Laptop 13-inch (2nd Edition) computers.

The new Surface devices are not branded as "Copilot+ PCs." Brett Ostrum, Corporate Vice President of Surface, stated that the devices meet previous technical standards despite the name change. "They are not called Copilot+ PCs," Ostrum said. He added that the hardware satisfies established performance criteria. "They do meet all the requirements of our previous bar for what Copilot+ devices are," he said.

Copilot+ PC certification requires 16GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, and a neural processing unit with performance of at least 40 trillion operations per second. The new Surface Pro 12-inch (2nd Edition) and Surface Laptop 13-inch (2nd Edition) use Qualcomm Snapdragon X2 Plus processors. The Qualcomm Hexagon NPU in these devices is rated at 80 TOPS.

The Surface Pro 12-inch features an enclosure made with 86% recycled content. The Surface Laptop 13-inch offers up to 22.5 hours of battery life.

The updated Copilot application integrates chat functionality with a feature called Cowork on the Home tab. Microsoft has embedded Word, Excel, and PowerPoint directly within the Copilot application. Users can select between a menu of frontier models for Copilot, including Fable and Astra. Copilot utilizes AI models from Anthropic, OpenAI, and xAI.

The Copilot Code tab allows users to create applications, trackers, dashboards, or automations using natural language. Copilot Code integrates with Microsoft IQ to ground everything created in the context of work. Microsoft IQ serves as the unified intelligence platform for enterprise AI across the Microsoft stack.

The Code feature runs in a sandboxed environment and can be hosted within a customer's tenant. "Powered by the same underlying technology as GitHub Copilot, Code runs in a sandboxed environment and can be hosted securely within your tenant," said Jared Spataro, Chief Marketing Officer of AI at Work.

Microsoft rebranded its AI assistant Scout as Autopilot. Autopilot was previously described as a digital teammate in earlier documentation. The feature enables AI agents to perform tasks such as monitoring Teams channels, running recurring work tasks, and handling follow-ups. "Autopilot lives in your tenant with its own identity, memory, computer, and workspace, and it’s built on Microsoft IQ so it understands how your organization actually works," Spataro said.

Microsoft is implementing usage-based billing for the Cowork, Code, and Autopilot components of the Copilot app. Code and Autopilot charge on a usage-based billing model, meaning the price depends on the scope and complexity of a task. The standard Copilot user subscription license includes access to Copilot in Chat, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Teams. Microsoft unveiled cost-management capabilities to provide employees with insight into costs tied to their AI usage.

Microsoft is introducing Copilot Managed Runtime, a hosting environment that lets applications created through Code, Cowork, and Copilot Studio run within an organisation’s Microsoft 365 environment. "I think it’s been very hard for many organizations to bring agents into the enterprise because of security, compliance and governance concerns," said Annie Pearl, Corporate Vice President of Copilot Product. She noted that policy governance remains a priority for enterprise adoption.

Jared Spataro positioned the update as a defining shift for workplace technology. "Just as Office defined work for the PC era, the new Copilot is built to define it for the AI era," he said. Jacob Andreou, Executive Vice President for Copilot, emphasized the company's standards.

"We're holding a very high bar," Andreou said. Microsoft merged its consumer and enterprise Copilot teams under Andreou's leadership earlier this year.

The Home and Code tabs will begin rolling out to members of Microsoft's Frontier program in the coming weeks. The Autopilot feature will enter private preview later this month. The Code feature will be available in preview for Microsoft 365 Premium and Pro subscribers later this year. The new Surface Pro 12-inch (2nd Edition) and Surface Laptop 13-inch (2nd Edition) are scheduled for release on October 13.

Timeline

Microsoft reported in July that Microsoft 365 Copilot had surpassed 30 million paid seats. The company stated that net seats added for Microsoft 365 Copilot doubled quarter over quarter in July.

What's New

Additional reporting details that Autopilot lives in a tenant with its own identity, memory, computer, and workspace, and is built on Microsoft IQ to understand organizational workflows. Technical documentation specifies that Copilot Code integrates with Microsoft IQ to ground creations in work context. Earlier documentation described Autopilot, formerly Scout, as a digital teammate.

The official Microsoft Copilot blog describes Microsoft IQ as the unified intelligence platform for enterprise AI across the Microsoft stack. Technical specifications indicate the Surface Laptop 13-inch offers up to 22.5 hours of battery life.

Statements confirm that Code runs in a sandboxed environment powered by GitHub Copilot technology and can be hosted securely within a tenant. Leadership characterized the new Copilot as built to define work for the AI era, similar to how Office defined the PC era.

Why It Matters

Fewer than 7% of the more than 450 million commercial Office 365 seats globally have licenses for the AI addition. This low adoption rate contrasts with the reported growth, as Microsoft stated that net seats added for Microsoft 365 Copilot doubled quarter over quarter in July. The introduction of usage-based billing and managed runtime environments addresses specific enterprise barriers related to security and cost control.

The rebranding of Surface devices away from the Copilot+ PC name follows reports that security concerns tarnished the reputation of those devices. By embedding core Office applications directly into the Copilot interface and offering granular billing options, Microsoft aims to integrate AI more deeply into existing workflows while managing governance risks. The consolidation of consumer and enterprise teams under a single executive reflects a strategic push to unify the product experience.