Copilot for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance & Operation starts with low risk cases, aims for high value scenarios

Business Applications at Microsoft are destined for a future “powered by Copilot”. Coming out of Ignite 2023, the company has adapted its Dynamics 365 messaging and product outlook to focus on work experiences guided by AI-based automation and analysis.

The world of enterprise systems will remain complex, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations product team members acknowledged in various session at the conference. Low stakes features like helpful chatbots and email text generation tools may lead the way, but AI-powered research canvases, automated decision support engines tied to machine learning models, and other data-driven orchestration and analytics scenarios should soon follow across a range of roles.

One key goal for AI in the context of Dynamics 365 F&O is simplifying th complex in order to improve processes and performance, officials stressed.

“Imagine a world where your ERP can be that ChatGPT for your business,” said Raghav Jandhala, head of product for Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management. In a session at Ignite, he stated that his team is focused on converting F&O apps into “systems of reasoning”, with new capabilities, beginning with low-stakes scenarios and then evolving, with a guiding principle of “Copilot everywhere” and AI-first experiences.

In Dynamics 365 SCM, AI-based solutions will aim to “delegate cognitive load to software,” according to a slide Raghav shared with the audience. Some of Microsoft’s existing Copilot-related solutions for D365 F&O are in preview today. In D365 Project Operations, the Copilot preview generates project status reports, offers interactive chat, and populates budget tracking, work progress, and other information.

More SCM tools: Demand planning, Supply planning, and more

The Power Apps-based demand planning application, also in preview, can update forecasts, either using an ML model specified by the user or by letting AI select a model for best fit. Customers can bring their own pre-trained models for demand planning, Raghav noted.