If 2023 was the year everyone talked about AI, and 2024 was the year everyone tested AI, then 2025 was the year AI grabbed a permanent seat at the conference table, logged into Microsoft 365, and just started… working.
This year, Copilot 365 went from “that cool new feature” to “the coworker who somehow knows where every file is, remembers every meeting, but still doesn’t get me coffee.” And for me? It was a front-row seat to one of the biggest shifts in how people use technology since the smartphone.
Talking with Dozens of Customers: Translation—AI Therapy Sessions
I spent the year meeting with dozens of customers across industries: construction, finance, retail, manufacturing, healthcare, and a few who still claim, “we run on spreadsheets and hope.” Almost every conversation followed a predictable arc:
- “We’ve tried AI… but we’re not sure if we’re doing it right.”
- “Wait, Copilot can do that?”
- “Okay but what about our data security?”
- “Okay but does it REALLY save time?”
- “Okay but can it fix our broken SharePoint site from 2016?” (It cannot. Please stop asking.)
Across the board, customers had the same realization: Using AI isn’t about replacing workers, it’s about replacing work nobody wanted to do in the first place. Summaries, status reports, meeting prep, inbox triage… Copilot became the teammate who doesn’t complains, never sleeps, and always shows up prepared.
Copilot 365: The Real MVP of 2025
Some of the standout Copilot 365 moments this year:
- Outlook Copilot continued to save careers by turning piles of unread emails into digestible summaries instead of burnout catalysts.
- Teams Copilot became that one person in every meeting actually taking notes, except this time they’re accurate.
- SharePoint and OneDrive Copilot finally made finding files feel less like archaeology.
- Power Platform + Copilot took app-building mainstream… like “your coworker who still double-spaces after periods built an app” mainstream.
And somehow Copilot still hasn’t unionized.
AI Topics That Defined 2025
Here’s what kept coming up again and again this year:
- Responsible AI & Governance
Everyone wants AI power, no one wants AI chaos. - AI in workflows (the real AI revolution)
Not magic, just smart automation layered on top of familiar tools. - Agentic systems + copilots working together
(A personal favorite, especially as I prepare talks on Copilot Agent Factories.) - AI literacy becoming a real skill
Prompting is not a trend; it’s the new digital fluency… And the ability to save and share those prompts. - The Great “Do We Need a Policy for This?” Movement
Yes. Yes, you do.
A Little Humor for 2025 (because we deserve it)
A few things I’ve learned this year:
- AI doesn’t hallucinate nearly as much as the people who think they understand how licensing works.
- Copilot is great at summarizing decisions, assuming your meeting actually had any.
- If you want people to understand AI, don’t show them a 40-slide deck, show them how to use it to avoid writing the deck.
And my favorite customer quote of the year:
“If Copilot really works like this, I might finally have a work-life balance. Or at least pretend to.”
Looking Ahead: 2026 and the Road Forward
If 2025 was about adoption, 2026 will be about integration. Not just plugging AI into tools, but weaving it into processes, culture, and decision-making. We’re heading toward a year where:
- Copilot becomes proactive, not reactive
- AI literacy becomes a standard job skill
- Agents handle multi-step workflows end-to-end
- Knowledge workers finally get to be knowledge workers again
2026 won’t be “the year of AI.”
That’s behind us.
2026 will be the year organizations finally learn how to work with their new AI teammates.
And I can’t wait.
Craig Jahnke 
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