Microsoft has announced a sweeping set of updates to its OneDrive cloud storage service, including an improved search experience, a revamped mobile app, and the wide release of AI-powered Copilot features for business customers.
The company is rolling out a faster, more intuitive search function with enhanced filter controls and result details. The new search function is designed to help users quickly locate specific files across OneDrive, shared libraries, and teammates’ folders. This upgrade will reach all commercial customers by the end of 2024.
For Windows users, OneDrive will now support colored folders in File Explorer, allowing for easier visual organization. Microsoft is also bringing significant updates to SharePoint document libraries, promising improved performance and more flexible viewing options.
On mobile devices, the OneDrive app is getting a photos-first redesign. New AI-powered features will help users find specific images using natural language searches. For example, users can type phrases like "Sophia and her dog on a boat" to surface relevant photos.
Perhaps most notably, Microsoft announced that Copilot in OneDrive is now available to all of its commercial customers. This AI assistant can summarize documents, compare files, and answer questions about content without users needing to open individual files.
Microsoft also unveiled Copilot agents, a powerful new feature coming to OneDrive. These customizable AI assistants can be created by users to automate repetitive tasks and provide quick access to information across multiple files and folders.
Copilot agents can be shared with team members, making it easier to onboard new employees or collaborate on complex projects. For instance, a user organizing a conference could create an agent with access to all event-related documents, allowing team members to quickly retrieve information about schedules, budgets, or logistics.
More exciting capabilities are on the horizon, including meeting recaps generated directly in OneDrive and the ability to convert Word documents into PowerPoint presentations automatically.
These updates underscore Microsoft's push to make OneDrive more than just cloud storage, positioning it as a central hub for file management and collaboration across its ecosystem of productivity tools.