How Context Shapes Copilot's Answers
The same question can get wildly different answers depending on what context Copilot has. Learn how work files, web data, and the app you're in affect what Copilot tells you.
Why context matters
Imagine asking someone “What should we do about the budget?” without any context.
They’d stare at you blankly. Which budget? What’s the problem? What have we tried before?
Copilot works the same way. The more context you give it — specific files, the right app, relevant data — the better its answers. Ask the same question in Word vs Copilot Chat vs Excel and you’ll get three different responses, because each app gives Copilot different context to work with.
Better context = better answers. That’s the single most important lesson for using Copilot well.
The three layers of context
1. Work context — your Microsoft 365 data
When you use Copilot at work, it can access your:
- Emails (Outlook)
- Files (SharePoint, OneDrive)
- Chats and channels (Teams)
- Calendar (meetings, attendees, agendas)
- Contacts (people in your organisation)
This is the context that makes Copilot uniquely useful compared to generic AI tools. It knows about YOUR projects, YOUR clients, YOUR deadlines.
2. Web context — public internet data
When web grounding is enabled, Copilot can also pull information from the internet. This is useful for:
- Current events and news
- Industry benchmarks and statistics
- General knowledge and definitions
Key distinction: Work context gives you personalised, organisation-specific answers. Web context gives you general, publicly available information. The exam tests whether you understand when each is used.
3. App context — where you’re asking
The app you’re in dramatically changes what Copilot can do:
| Same prompt | In Word | In Copilot Chat |
|---|---|---|
| "Summarise the Q3 report" | Summarises the document currently open | Searches across ALL your M365 data for anything related to Q3 reports |
| "What actions do I need to take?" | Lists to-dos mentioned in the current document | Checks emails, chats, and calendar for pending actions |
| "Create a summary" | Generates a summary of the open document | Asks what you want summarised — could be anything in your M365 data |
Real-world: Jordan's context lesson
Jordan at Peak Solutions asked Copilot in Word: “What are our top customers by revenue?”
Copilot responded: “I can see the document you have open, but it doesn’t contain customer revenue data. Try referencing a specific file or asking in Copilot Chat where I can search across your data.”
Then Jordan opened Copilot Chat and asked the same question. This time, Copilot found the Q3 sales spreadsheet on SharePoint and listed the top 10 customers with revenue figures.
The lesson: Word Copilot only sees the current document. Copilot Chat searches everything.
How to improve context
| Strategy | What to Do | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Be specific | Name files, people, or dates | ”Summarise the email from Sarah about Project Phoenix last Tuesday” |
| Reference files | Use the ”/” or attachment feature to point Copilot at specific documents | ”/Q3-budget.xlsx What’s the total marketing spend?” |
| Choose the right app | Use the app that already has the data you need | Use Excel Copilot for spreadsheet analysis, not Copilot Chat |
| Add instructions | Tell Copilot the format and detail level you want | ”Give me 5 bullet points, each under 20 words” |
Work data vs web data
| Aspect | Work Data (Microsoft Graph) | Web Data (Internet) |
|---|---|---|
| Source | Your emails, files, chats, calendar | Public websites and search results |
| Personalised? | Yes — specific to your organisation | No — generic, publicly available |
| Permission-controlled? | Yes — respects your M365 permissions | No — anyone can see it |
| Can be disabled? | Admins can restrict scope (e.g., Restricted SharePoint Search limits which sites Copilot accesses) | Yes — admins can disable web grounding |
| Best for | Internal projects, company data, colleague work | Market research, benchmarks, current events |
🎬 Video walkthrough
🎬 Video coming soon
How Context Shapes Copilot's Answers — AB-730 Module 3
How Context Shapes Copilot's Answers — AB-730 Module 3
~8 minFlashcards
Knowledge Check
Ava asks Copilot in Word: 'What were last month's social media engagement metrics?' The document she has open is a campaign brief with no metrics. What will Copilot most likely do?
Marcus wants Copilot to compare data from a Q2 Excel report with decisions made in Teams chat. Which approach gives him the BEST result?
Next up: Copilot Chat and agents — two different ways to work with AI. Learn when to use each and why you might want to create your own agent.