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Microsoft is taking a bold new step in enterprise artificial intelligence with the development of AI agents that function as independent digital users. According to the company’s official Microsoft 365 Roadmap, these upcoming tools—called Agentic Users—will be capable of performing various business tasks autonomously, blurring the lines between human employees and intelligent software.

The new class of AI is expected to roll out in November, though Microsoft has not yet confirmed an exact release date for enterprise users.

Microsoft Is Building General-Purpose AI Agents

Unlike traditional AI assistants designed for specific use cases, Microsoft describes Agentic Users as general-purpose embodied AI. This means they can operate independently within an organisation’s digital ecosystem, equipped with their own digital identity, credentials, and system access—much like a real employee.

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According to Microsoft’s roadmap listing, these agents will appear in the Microsoft 365 Agent Store and Teams, where administrators can create and deploy them as part of the enterprise workforce.

What Can These AI Agents Do?

The new Agentic Users are designed to collaborate, communicate, and execute complex workflows across different Microsoft 365 applications. Some of their proposed capabilities include:

- Attending and participating in meetings

- Editing and creating documents

- Communicating via email and chat

- Collaborating with both humans and other AI agents

In essence, these digital entities will be able to perform the same kinds of tasks as human employees — but autonomously and at scale.

How Agentic Users Fit into the Workplace

According to Microsoft, each Agentic User will have their own digital identity, which they can switch between across enterprise platforms, including Teams, Outlook, Word and SharePoint. That allows agents to access files, send and receive messages, and manage projects as a human colleague would.

Enterprise administrators will want to be able to specify what exactly these agents are allowed to perform and also to comply with company policy and/or compliance standards.

Licensing and Integration Details

According to Rich Gibbons, a Microsoft licensing expert cited by The Register, internal documentation refers to these AI agents as A365. The documents suggest that when admins approve an Agentic User, they will assign it a required A365 licence, though no additional licence may be needed.

Gibbons speculates that “we will see a range of A365 licenses for different roles,” meaning enterprises could deploy different types of AI agents depending on their business needs.

Another admin, João Ferreira, also confirmed that these AI agents will come with their own email addresses, Teams accounts, entries in enterprise directories, and even a place within the organisational chart. This indicates that Agentic Users will not simply act as background tools but as active digital participants in the corporate environment.

Why It Matters

Agentic Users: the panacea and Achilles heel of workplace automation Introducing Agentic Users constitutes a tectonic shift in workplace automation. By imparting AI systems their own independent user status, Microsoft is effectively re-envisioning digital labour – transforming AI into active team members with the capacity to talk, act and administer workflows independently from constant human oversight.

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This could make businesses far more productive, but it also raises serious issues around responsibility, security, and governance. And as AI agents are given email addresses and access to systems, companies will require strong monitors of oversight to ensure transparency and prevent abuse.

The Future of Enterprise AI

Microsoft’s Agentic Users are part of a broader push toward autonomous, AI-driven enterprises, where intelligent systems handle day-to-day operational tasks. As these agents evolve, they could reshape how businesses manage everything from communication to data analysis and decision-making.

While the November launch window is still tentative, one thing is clear: Microsoft’s Agentic Users could mark the beginning of a new era where AI is no longer just a tool but a co-worker.

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