Update to agents in SharePoint: Simpler launch experience and new site AI settings

SharePoint updates simplify agent management with new Site AI settings, letting site owners control highlighted agents. Approved agents won’t appear in the Agent Picker and should be placed on pages. Rollout starts mid-November 2024, completing by June 2026, affecting all SharePoint Online tenants.

[Introduction]

We’re updating how agents in SharePoint work to provide a simpler experience for agents selected on a site.

As a refresher, Get started with agents in SharePoint - Microsoft Support, there are two types of agents in SharePoint:

• Ready-made agent - Every SharePoint site comes with a "ready-made agent", automatically scoped to the content on that site. These agents, scoped to the SharePoint site, require no building from site admins or site owners. 
• Custom-built agent - With site editing permissions, you can create custom agents with a specific content scope, identity, and behavior.

With this update, we're introducing a new Site AI settings to give site owners more control over which agents are highlighted on their sites. Approved agents will no longer appear in the Agent Picker, so these agents should be placed directly on the site page for better discoverability.

[When this will happen]

General Availability (Worldwide): We began rolling out in mid-November 2024 and expect rollout to complete by early June 2026.

[How this affects your organization]

Who is affected

• All Microsoft 365 tenants using SharePoint Online
• Site owners and content authors managing how custom agents are discovered on their site

What will happen

• Site owners will manage the site’s "Default" agent through the main agent setting in the new Site AI settings panel in SharePoint site settings.
• For existing sites, the current "Default" agent will automatically become the site’s main agent.
• For new sites, the main agent will be the ready-made agent
• Users no longer access approved agents through the agent picker and overflow menu in the chat pane. All approved agents remain in the Site Assets\Copilots\Approved folder.
• To help users discover agents, site owners and builders should surface agents directly on pages using supported web parts or shared agent links.

This feature is on by default and does not require tenant-level configuration changes.

[What you can do to prepare]

No immediate admin action is required. We recommend the following preparation steps:

• Ask site owners and builders to review the approved agents on their sites in the Site Assets\Copilots\Approved folder.
• Encourage site owners to add or update agent links on pages using supported web parts, such as: Agent Link web part, Editorial Card web part, and adding shared .agent file links in Text web part
• Inform users that agents they recently used can be found in:
• • Build “Owned by me” section by choosing the Agents filter,
  • OneDrive web Home > Recent view (filterable by agent), or
  • Microsoft 365 Copilot agents list

Learn more:

• Use the Agent Link web part | Microsoft Support
• Use the Editorial Card web part | Microsoft Support
• Add text, tables, and images to your page with the Text web part | Microsoft Support 

[Compliance considerations] 

No compliance considerations identified. Review as appropriate for your organization.