Short answer: Work IQ is the intelligence layer behind Microsoft 365 Copilot. It helps Copilot understand your work context: your emails, calendar, Teams chats, meetings and files in OneDrive and SharePoint. That means you can simply ask a question, such as "What did we agree with customer X last month?", and Copilot looks for the answer in your own work data. In Copilot Chat you turn Work IQ on or off with a single button. Copilot only sees information you already have access to [1][3].

Where was that one agreement again? In an email? A Teams conversation? Or somewhere in a Word document?

Sound familiar? You know the information is out there, but by the time you find it, ten minutes have gone by. With Work IQ, Microsoft 365 Copilot makes that a lot easier. In this article you will learn what Work IQ is, how to turn it on and off, what it means for your daily work and which prompts you can use right away.

Work IQ at a glance

Question	Answer
What is it?	The intelligence layer that gives Copilot and agents context about your work. It is not a separate app you open [3].
Which information?	Including emails, calendar, Teams chats, meetings and files. Business data, such as Dynamics 365 and Power Apps, is being added as well [3][4].
How do you turn it on?	With the Work IQ button at the top of the Copilot Chat screen [1].
Is it on by default?	Yes, for users with a Microsoft 365 Copilot license [1].
Is it secure?	Work IQ follows your organization's existing access permissions, sensitivity labels and DLP policies [3].
What do you need?	A paid Microsoft 365 Copilot license. With the free Copilot Chat you work with web information and files you add yourself [1][2].

What is Microsoft Work IQ?

Work IQ is the smart layer between Copilot and your work information. Microsoft describes it as "foundational infrastructure, not a user-facing feature": you don't notice it as a separate feature, but it makes sure Copilot understands what you are working on, who you work with and which information matters right now [3].

To do that, Copilot can use information from several Microsoft 365 apps [1][3]:

Outlook: your emails and appointments.
Teams: chats, channel conversations and meetings, including transcripts and recaps.
Word, Excel and PowerPoint: your documents and presentations.
OneDrive and SharePoint: stored and shared files.

The big advantage? You no longer need to know exactly where something is stored. You simply ask Copilot!

How does Work IQ work behind the scenes?

Microsoft builds Work IQ from three layers [3]:

Layer	What does it do?	What do you notice?
Data	Brings together signals from files, emails, meetings, chats and business systems.	Copilot can combine information from different apps in one answer.
Memory	Builds a lasting understanding of how you and your team work.	Answers fit your role and way of working better.
Inference	Combines AI models, skills and tools to reason and take action.	Copilot can do more than search: it summarizes, connects the dots and makes suggestions.

Work IQ does not replace Microsoft Graph. Graph shows which information exists, Work IQ interprets what that information means for your work [3].

See how Work IQ works

Curious what that looks like? In this video you can see Work IQ in Microsoft 365 Copilot in action.

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How do you find all information about a project with Copilot?

Say you are working on Project X. Over the past month, dozens of emails were sent, Teams conversations were held and documents were updated. Tomorrow you have a meeting. What is the latest status?

Instead of searching through everything yourself, you ask Copilot:

💡 Try this prompt:

Give me an overview of Project X. Review all relevant emails, Teams conversations, meetings and documents from the past month. What was discussed, which decisions were made and which action items are still open? Include source references.

Copilot combines the relevant information into a clear summary, with references to the sources. That way you can open the original message or document with one click and check it.

Less searching, better prepared!

How do you turn Work IQ on or off?

Fortunately, there is nothing complicated to set up!

Open Microsoft 365 Copilot and go to Chat.
At the top of the chat screen you will find the Work IQ button.
Click Work IQ to turn the feature on or off.

How can you tell whether Work IQ is on?

Work IQ without a line through it: the feature is on. Copilot can use your work data alongside web information [1].
Work IQ with a line through it: the feature is off. Copilot answers without your work data. It still uses web information and files you add to your prompt yourself [1].

Do you have a Microsoft 365 Copilot license? Then Work IQ is on by default [1]. Earlier versions of Copilot Chat had a switch between Work and Web in this spot; it has been replaced by the Work IQ button.

💡 Tip: want to choose per question which sources Copilot uses? Use the menu for changing sources in the compose box to turn sources on or off [1].

When do you turn Work IQ on and when off?

Turn Work IQ on when you…	Turn Work IQ off when you…
want to know what was agreed in your last meeting	have a general question, such as "What are the most important AI trends of 2026?"
want to prepare for a meeting or customer call	want to write a text that has nothing to do with your own work
want to find an email, chat or document	only want to work with a file you add yourself
want to catch up after your vacation	want to be sure no internal information ends up in your answer

Which prompts can you use right away?

You really notice the power of Work IQ when you use it in your daily work. Below are examples you can copy and adapt.

Catch up quickly after your vacation

I have been away for two weeks. Which important developments did I miss? Use my emails, Teams conversations and meetings. Put the items I need to act on at the top.

Find a forgotten agreement

What did we agree with customer X about the schedule last month? Search my emails and Teams conversations and list the sources.

Find the right document

Find the most recent version of our 2027 marketing strategy and give me a link to the document.

Prepare your meeting

Prepare my meeting about Project X. What is the current status, what did we agree last time and which action items are still open?

Prioritize your inbox

Which emails from this week need a reply from me? Order them by urgency and summarize in one sentence per email what is expected of me.

Prepare a conversation with a colleague

I have a meeting with [colleague's name] tomorrow. What have we discussed over the past month in emails, chats and meetings, and which items are still open?

Write a first draft based on earlier work

Write a first draft of the project plan for Project Y. Use the relevant documents, emails and Teams conversations about this project and list which sources you used.

💡 Tip: be as specific as possible about the period, the customer or the project in your prompt, and always ask for sources. That makes it quick to check the answer. Read more tips in our article about Microsoft Copilot prompts.

How do teams use Work IQ in practice?

Microsoft uses Work IQ internally and shares a few examples [3]:

Outlook: Copilot uses Work IQ context to show which messages need your attention first, with summaries and suggestions.
Teams meetings: transcripts and recaps become part of the attendees' work context. At Microsoft Legal, a transcript of a process-mapping session was used with the Researcher agent to create a process diagram. According to the presenter, doing that by hand would have taken hours.
SharePoint: Copilot drafts text based on recently edited documents, emails and Teams conversations.
Memory: Copilot remembers your work history and tailors answers to your role, for example a short summary for communications staff and more technical detail for engineers.

Does Work IQ also work with business data such as Dynamics 365?

Yes, and that is new. Since September 30, 2026, a preview lets Work IQ also use data from Dynamics 365 Sales and Customer Service, Power Apps and custom apps. Support for Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations follows from late October 2026 [4].

This lets Copilot and agents combine, for example, customer data from your CRM with emails and Teams meetings. They can also propose changes in a business system, while users stay within their own permissions and approval is required [4]. Using Work IQ with business data is billed in Copilot Credits [4].

For developers and IT there are the Work IQ APIs, an MCP server and a command-line tool (CLI). With these you can also connect agents in Copilot Studio or your own AI assistants to your Microsoft 365 data [4][5]. Want to know when to choose an agent in Copilot or in Copilot Studio? Read our article Copilot Agents and Copilot Studio: which one do you choose?.

Can everyone use Work IQ?

Not every feature is available to every Copilot user.

	Copilot Chat (free)	Microsoft 365 Copilot (paid)
Questions based on web information	Yes	Yes
Working with files you add yourself	Yes	Yes
Searching your emails, chats, meetings and files with Work IQ	No	Yes, on by default

Source: Microsoft Support [1][2]. Not sure which license fits your organization? Our Copilot Start Guide lists the options.

Is Work IQ safe for your business information?

Work IQ adds no new data and gives no one extra permissions. Microsoft lists the following principles [3]:

Copilot only sees information you already have access to and that your organization's policies allow.
Existing access permissions, sensitivity labels and DLP (Data Loss Prevention) policies still apply.
A document labeled "Highly Confidential" is not revealed through Copilot to someone without access, even if it appears in a meeting transcript.
Sensitivity labels carry over to what Copilot creates from the content, such as a summary.

Note: Copilot does reveal what is shared too widely in your organization. If a SharePoint folder is open to everyone, Copilot can use that information too. So clean up widely shared folders and sites before rolling out Copilot broadly. Read more about this in our Copilot Start Guide.

Frequently asked questions about Work IQ

What is the difference between Work IQ and Copilot?

Copilot is the AI assistant you work with. Work IQ is the layer that lets that assistant understand your work context and use relevant information from your Microsoft 365 environment [3].

Can Work IQ search my Teams chats?

Yes, with a Microsoft 365 Copilot license Copilot can use information from Teams chats and meetings you have access to [1][3].

Can Copilot also find old emails?

Yes. You can, for example, ask about earlier agreements, conversations with customers or decisions from a specific period. The more specific you are about the period and topic, the better the result.

Is Work IQ secure?

Work IQ follows your organization's existing access permissions, sensitivity labels and DLP policies. As a result, Copilot does not get access to information you are normally not allowed to see [3]. Always check important answers yourself.

What happens when Work IQ is off?

Copilot then does not use your work data as a source. You can still ask general questions, use web information and add files to your prompt yourself [1].

Does Work IQ cost extra?

Work IQ in Copilot Chat is part of the Microsoft 365 Copilot license. If you use Work IQ with business data from Dynamics 365 or Power Apps, that is billed in Copilot Credits [4].

Less searching, more done!

From a forgotten email to all the information about an entire project: Work IQ makes Microsoft 365 Copilot a lot smarter in daily work. And the best part? You don't need to write complicated instructions. Often a simple question is enough to get started.

Want to discover how your team gets more out of Copilot? In our Microsoft Copilot workshops employees practice with their own work, and with the AI E-learning with Copilot they learn at their own pace.

View the Copilot training

Practical Microsoft Copilot workshops for teams, with examples from your own work.

Disclaimer

This article was carefully compiled from public information from Microsoft, as available on November 2, 2026. Microsoft regularly changes features, names, settings and licenses. Availability and features depend on your license, your organization's settings and your access permissions. No rights can be derived from this article.

Microsoft, Microsoft 365, Copilot and other product names mentioned are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. AmeCoda is an independent Microsoft Copilot specialist offering training, e-learning and advice to businesses. AmeCoda operates independently and is not affiliated with Microsoft.

What is Work IQ? How Copilot finds your emails, Teams chats and documents