Microsoft has given Copilot in Excel 365 some smarts to choose the table or cells to work on. Previously, Copilot relied on the user’s selected cell to determine context, often defaulting to the nearest structured table. We explain how it works in the real world and the important limitation.
Enter the new context inference capabilities. Now, Copilot deciphers the user’s natural language queries—such as “Analyze the ice cream prices” or “Explain the formula in G7″—and intelligently identifies the relevant table or data range, all without requiring a single click. It combines cues from the user’s words, cell selections, and chat history to pinpoint the appropriate context, making data interaction more intuitive than ever.
There’s also a visual feature: when Copilot selects a data range, it outlines the inferred table or range, providing users with clear, in-grid confirmation of the data being addressed. If Copilot’s guess isn’t spot-on, users can easily halt the response and refine their request.
Here’s how Microsoft demonstrates the new features:
We try the smarter Copilot
We start with two tables in a worksheet. There’s no special label on the tables except for the text in the top-left cell; Shirts or Paper.
According to Microsoft:
“Copilot interprets your intent using natural language and combines that with signals like cell selection and chat history to identify the right context; no clicks required. This new capability is focused on structured data like Excel Tables and supported data ranges, and it lays the foundation for broader context support in the future.”
In practice, ask Copilot “Find the average price of shirts” and it will find the right table, ignoring the rest and give the result in various forms.
How do you know that Copilot has selected the right data? According to Microsoft:
“To help build trust and transparency, we’ve also introduced a new visual experience that highlights the data Copilot is working with. When you submit a query, you’ll see a subtle outline around the inferred table or range, giving you a clear, in-grid confirmation of what Copilot is responding to.”
That’s true, up to a point, the data is highlighted as you can see below. However that only appears while Copilot is working. You have to watch Copilot carefully to see what it’s doing.
When Copilot is finished, the highlighting disappears. It’s close to “blink and you’ll miss it”. There’s only a cell reference in the response text (not even the table name).
Ideally the highlighted data should stay highlighted after the response appears. Or perhaps highlight the range with a clickable link
Who gets it?
Only in Excel 365, Smart Context Inference based on user’s prompt:
- Windows: v2505 build 18623.20058
- Mac: v16.95 build 2506.3090
Visual highlight of inferred table, appears first in:
- Windows: v2505 build 18705.20000
- Mac: v16.96 build 2506.4070
