GPT-5.6 is now the preferred model in Microsoft 365 Copilot, bringing 40% more complex query handling and 25% fewer hallucinations — plus a new Cowork feature for persistent AI collaboration.
What Improved
Benchmarked against the previous model: 40% more complex query handling (longer, multi-step requests succeed), 25% fewer hallucinations, and meaningfully better performance across Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook workflows. For Microsoft-heavy organizations, Copilot is now a genuinely different product.
The Cowork Feature
Cowork enables persistent AI collaboration — the assistant maintains context across sessions, documents, and projects. Instead of restarting context every document, Copilot remembers your working context and builds on it.
What It Means
Microsoft’s default choice of GPT-5.6 confirms OpenAI’s models as the enterprise productivity standard — and intensifies competition with Gemini in Workspace. For businesses, the choice between Microsoft 365 Copilot and Google Workspace Gemini is now the practical AI-deployment decision.
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