Next month, Microsoft will begin adding its AI-powered Copilot app to all 365 Desktop App users, regardless of whether they want to use it. The rollout is expected to be completed by mid-November and will exclude systems in the European Economic Area (EEA). Copilot will be added and enabled in the start menu. The following is from Microsoft (via Bleeping Computer):
“This app provides a centralized entry point for accessing Copilot experiences and AI-powered capabilities across Microsoft 365. This change simplifies access to Copilot and ensures users can easily discover and engage with productivity-enhancing features.”
-Microsoft
It isn’t all bad news, as business-managed devices still have the means to uninstall or disable Copilot if they choose to. Microsoft included guidance to IT Admins to alert users of the upcoming change to avoid confusion. Still, as it turns out, its deployment can be prevented via the policies and device management. Unfortunately, personal devices lack a clear path for doing the same, but it’s probable someone will discover it if Microsoft chooses not to disclose the technique. Here are the steps for Admins to disable Copilot.
- Sign in to the Microsoft 365 Apps admin center with an admin account.
- Go to Customization > Device Configuration > Modern App Settings.
- Select the Microsoft 365 Copilot app, then clear the Enable automatic installation of Microsoft 365 Copilot app check box.
Microsoft is going all out in integrating Copilot across all parts of Windows. It was previously announced that it would add features to the Edge browser sidebar, and before that, a new option was added allowing Admins to pin it to the taskbar. On the 365 subscription side of things, Copilot services were bundled in, which (per Tom’s Hardware) included a 43% price increase as well. It’s obvious that Microsoft wants to see returns sooner rather than later for the billions it has already invested in AI and is working on ways to get its users to help foot the bill, and all this, as reports indicate that AI adoption in 2025 has not gone as planned.
AI adoption actually falling now for many firms pic.twitter.com/BmTFHEqHPp
— Arpit Gupta (@arpitrage) September 7, 2025