AI agents and Copilot for business software

In small and mid-sized businesses, the problem is rarely a lack of data. The data is already there: in your business management software, in emails, in Excel files, in meetings. The problem is getting to it. To find out which orders are waiting to ship, which invoices are overdue, or which items are below their reorder point, too often you have to ask someone, build a report, or open yet another screen.

This is exactly the gap that Microsoft 365 Copilot and the So Smart Agents close: bringing artificial intelligence to where work actually happens — in the apps you use every day and in your company’s data — with the So Smart agents on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central included in the Copilot for Microsoft 365 subscription.

Work is changing: from AI assistant to AI that acts

Artificial intelligence is reshaping how we work, and the shift runs deeper than it seems. We are moving from data silos to integrated intelligence, from an AI assistant to AI that acts, from app-centric tools to a connected work system, from manual coordination to human–agent collaboration.

Microsoft 365 Copilot was built to enable this shift, and it rests on five pillars:

• Work IQ — the intelligence layer that personalizes Copilot to your data, your style and your context.
• Agentic Work — AI in the flow of work that turns intent into concrete action.
• Multi-model — the best model for each task, with no lock-in to a single vendor.
• Agent Platform — an ecosystem of agents, with the tools to build and manage them.
• Security & Management — security, governance and control built in by design.

Work IQ: the intelligence that knows your work

The difference between a generic chatbot and a real assistant is context. Work IQ combines Microsoft 365 signals with your company’s line-of-business (LOB) data, uses memory to learn your style, preferences and work habits, and relies on specialized instructions to adapt Copilot to your processes.

The result is simple: the more Copilot works with you, the more accurate it becomes on your data and your way of working. Everything flows through a single, persistent chat that keeps context across apps and tasks, and through agents ready to complete real tasks for you — across the whole Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365 and Power Platform ecosystem.

Copilot in the apps you use every day

Agentic capabilities are built into your everyday apps — from Word to Excel, from PowerPoint to Outlook:

• In Word: create, edit and summarize documents like a collaborator, generate drafts and rewrite text to fit tone and audience, with Track Changes and comments for transparent, reviewable edits.
• In Excel: build and update tables, formulas and charts, run the steps directly in the workbook, and analyze data with the model of your choice, on local and cloud files.
• In PowerPoint: respect the company brand kit — colors, fonts and templates — generate content based on files, meetings and emails, and create images and graphics right on the slide.
• In Outlook: write and refine emails, manage rules and triage, delegate the calendar and flag the week’s overload.

Open, flexible and secure by design

Copilot doesn’t lock you into a single AI vendor: it integrates the latest OpenAI models, Anthropic’s Claude in Researcher and in Copilot Chat, and more than 11,000 models via Microsoft Foundry through Copilot Studio. It always uses the model best suited to the task.

Above all, your data stays protected: it remains in your tenant, with access control, sensitivity labels, licensing and configuration under IT control.

The So Smart Agents on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central

So Smart is the cloud ERP for SMEs built on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central. On top of this foundation, the So Smart Agents add the missing piece: four dedicated assistants, one per business area, that work directly on Business Central data and integrate with Outlook, Teams, Excel and PDF through Work IQ.

• Accounting Assistant — turns your accounting software into a conversational assistant: general ledger, financial statements and aging. “What’s the cash account balance today?”, “Show me customer invoices overdue by more than 30 days.”
• Sales Assistant — sales management at the speed of a question: customers, quotes, orders, invoices and shipments. “Which sales orders are waiting to ship?”, “Which quotes expire this week?”
• Purchasing Assistant — vendors, purchase orders, receipts and payables. “Which purchase orders are behind on delivery?”, “Which vendors have invoices due soon?”
• Inventory Assistant — your inventory and warehouse management software: items, stock, movements and locations. “Which items are below the minimum stock level?”, “What’s the available stock at the main location?”

Each assistant works read-only on Business Central data, responds in natural language and always keeps the user in supervision.

A two-phase strategy

The So Smart agents follow a clear path.

Phase 1 — Assistant agents, available today: the user asks, the agent answers in natural language on real data, with supervision always on and results from day one, no training required.

Phase 2 — Autonomous agents, the evolution: the same agents are triggered by events in coordinated multi-agent flows, with the user supervising the critical steps.

What makes these agents different?

• Natural language inside the flow of work, not in a separate tool.
• Dedicated agents per area, instead of one generic AI.
• Configurable rules and thresholds aligned to your company policies.
• Human supervision on critical steps: you always stay in control.
• Proactive guidance on what needs attention.

In summary

With So Smart and Microsoft 365 Copilot, artificial intelligence stops being a separate tool and becomes part of everyday work:

• the full benefits of Microsoft 365 Copilot, integrated and secure in your tenant;
• the So Smart agents on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, one for each business area;
• a single license, with agent consumption included in the Copilot for M365 subscription.

No more data waiting for a question — instead, an AI that works inside your processes and helps you decide while the business is in motion.