Microsoft Copilot adds new Premium features

Key insights

• The video is a step-by-step tutorial on new Microsoft Copilot features for October 2026.
• It highlights new OpenAI and Anthropic model options in Copilot Premium.
• PowerPoint gets Interactive Slides and a new Record a Skill experience.
• Excel adds interactive HTML dashboards and Workbook Rules.
• Outlook gains updated Copilot settings, and SharePoint gets PDF splitting and deleted-item recovery.
• The description says all features shown require a Copilot Premium subscription.

Mike Tholfsen recently published a step-by-step tutorial video on new Microsoft Copilot features for October 2026. The video walks through model options, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook, and SharePoint updates, and the main takeaway is simple: these additions are aimed at users who already have Copilot Premium and want to do more of their daily work inside Microsoft 365.

The video description says the features shown require a Copilot Premium subscription. It also separates the items into those that are available now and those in Frontier preview, so the rollout stage matters if you are deciding whether to look for them in your tenant. That makes the video useful as a quick check for admins, power users, and makers who want to know what is new before they test it.

What's new

The description lists several Copilot updates. These include new OpenAI and Anthropic model options in Copilot Premium, an Interactive Slides button in PowerPoint, a Record a Skill experience in PowerPoint, interactive HTML dashboards in Excel, Workbook Rules in Excel, updated Copilot settings in Outlook, and two SharePoint changes: splitting PDFs and retrieving deleted items.

According to the table of contents, some of these items are already available now, while others are marked Frontier preview. The video also includes a PowerPoint interactive skill example for the human heart, linked from the description. That example is hosted in Mike Tholfsen’s GitHub samples repository and shows the kind of interactive PowerPoint content the video is discussing.

Why it matters

For end users, the changes point to a more interactive Copilot experience inside the Microsoft 365 apps they already use. Instead of treating Copilot as only a chat surface, the video shows it being used with presentation skills, workbook logic, and settings that affect how Copilot behaves in Outlook. That could change everyday work for people who build slides, manage spreadsheets, or handle email-heavy tasks.

For admins and consultants, the key issue is scope. The source material says the features require Copilot Premium, and it separates available-now items from Frontier preview items. That means not every tenant will see the same experience at the same time, and some features may need more careful testing before rollout. For readers tracking Microsoft 365 changes broadly, this is another sign that Copilot is becoming more integrated with the apps rather than sitting beside them.

The PowerPoint and Excel updates may also matter to makers who create repeatable content and reporting workflows. If a slide skill or workbook rule can be recorded or applied consistently, that may reduce manual formatting and repetitive edits. The video does not go into licensing detail beyond Copilot Premium, but that is enough to tell readers the audience is not the entire Microsoft 365 base.

How it works

The video description gives a clear list of the areas covered, but it does not provide a full technical walkthrough for each one. Based on the material, the flow is:

1. Open Copilot Premium and choose between the new model options mentioned in the video.
2. Use PowerPoint’s Interactive Slides button to work with interactive slide content.
3. Try the new Record a Skill experience in PowerPoint, which is marked Frontier preview.
4. Use Excel’s HTML interactive dashboards and Workbook Rules, both marked Frontier preview.
5. Open the updated Copilot settings in Outlook.
6. Use SharePoint to split PDFs or retrieve deleted items.

The GitHub sample linked in the description provides a concrete example of a PowerPoint interactive skill. That sample sits in Mike Tholfsen’s repository and is titled for the human heart. While the video description does not explain the implementation in detail, the link shows that interactive slide skills are meant to be demonstrated through a working sample rather than just described in theory.

If you want to place these changes in a product context, the PowerPoint and Excel items relate closely to PowerPoint and Excel workflows, while the Outlook item affects how users interact with Copilot in email. The SharePoint items are described only at a headline level in the source material, so the video does not show the full mechanics in the text provided.

Limitations and open questions

The source material is short and mostly descriptive, so it does not answer every practical question. It does not explain which Copilot Premium plan includes each feature, how broad the rollout is, or whether the Frontier preview features need separate enrollment. It also does not describe regional availability or tenant-level prerequisites.

Another limit is that the description names features, but not their detailed settings, admin controls, or troubleshooting steps. The SharePoint updates are only summarized as splitting PDFs and retrieving deleted items, so we cannot verify from the provided material how those actions work in the interface. The same is true for the Outlook settings update and the Excel dashboard and rule features.

The video also uses the phrase personal project and says the opinions are the creator’s own, not Microsoft’s. That matters because readers should treat the content as a practical walkthrough from a Microsoft product leader, not as an official feature announcement with full release documentation.

Sources

• YouTube video by Mike Tholfsen
• PowerPoint interactive skill sample on GitHub

Frequently asked questions

What features does the video cover?

The description lists new OpenAI and Anthropic model options in Copilot Premium, PowerPoint Interactive Slides, Record a Skill in PowerPoint, Excel HTML interactive dashboards, Excel Workbook Rules, Outlook Copilot settings updates, and two SharePoint updates.

Are these features all available now?

No. The table of contents marks some items as available now and others as Frontier preview. The source material does not say which tenants or regions get them first.

Do I need Copilot Premium?

Yes, according to the video description, all of the features shown require a Copilot Premium subscription.

Does the source explain how the SharePoint changes work?

Only at a high level. The description says SharePoint can split PDFs and retrieve deleted items, but it does not explain the full interface steps or limitations.