Microsoft 365 Copilot to get GPT-5.6 default model

GPT-5.6 will become the preferred model in Microsoft 365 Copilot across Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Chat and Cowork.

The update brings OpenAI's latest flagship model series into Microsoft's workplace software for drafting documents, analysing data, building presentations and collaborating across teams. Microsoft will access the model directly through the OpenAI API for Microsoft 365 customers, alongside serving models natively.

The move extends the long-running relationship between the two companies and gives Microsoft 365 users a new default AI model in applications widely used for office work. OpenAI says the model is designed to deliver stronger results from each token and handle more demanding tasks when needed.

In Word, GPT-5.6 is meant to help users draft, edit and refine documents with fewer rounds of prompting. In Excel, it can support deeper analysis while using tokens more efficiently, helping users move from data to insights more quickly.

In PowerPoint, the model is expected to help turn early concepts into more polished presentations with less manual guidance. In Cowork, it can help people manage complex work across functions and produce outputs with less manual coordination.

The introduction of a preferred model matters because it shapes the default Copilot experience inside Microsoft 365. That affects how users interact with AI across routine office tasks, from writing and spreadsheet work to presentation design and collaborative workflows.

Microsoft described the update as part of its ongoing work with OpenAI on AI features for business software. Nitin Agrawal, President, Copilot & Agents Core at Microsoft, said the change would be visible across the company's main productivity applications.

"We can't wait for customers to see what GPT-5.6 in Microsoft 365 will do, enabling them to work even more effectively with AI in the tools they use every day. Using Copilot powered by OpenAI's latest model, customers will be able to produce more polished outputs in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Cowork, and Copilot Chat, whether they are drafting documents, analyzing data, creating presentations, or collaborating across teams. We're excited to continue building with OpenAI to bring more powerful AI experiences to people and organizations around the world," Agrawal said.

For OpenAI, the rollout puts GPT-5.6 in front of a large base of workplace users through software already embedded in many organisations. It also reinforces the company's strategy of distributing models through major software platforms as well as direct API access.

Nikunj Handa, Head of API Product at OpenAI, linked the change to day-to-day productivity use inside Microsoft 365.

"Microsoft 365 is where millions of people write, analyze, create, and collaborate every day. By bringing GPT-5.6 to Microsoft 365 Copilot through the OpenAI API, we're helping organizations get more useful work from every token, and more value from AI in the tools they already use," Handa said.

Model rollout

The announcement did not include commercial terms or say whether GPT-5.6 would immediately replace all prior default models for every Microsoft 365 customer. It did make clear that the model is being positioned as the preferred choice within Copilot across the named applications.

That suggests Microsoft is continuing to tighten the link between its productivity suite and OpenAI's newest models while keeping API-based access as part of the deployment route. For users, the practical effect is likely to be seen in the quality of first-draft outputs, analytical assistance and support for multi-step workplace tasks inside familiar software.

OpenAI said Microsoft 365 users would be able to create higher-quality work products with less effort across the applications they already use.