Microsoft launches AI Accelerator for Sales and two new agents

Microsoft is set to transform sales operations with the introduction of its AI Accelerator for Sales, aiming to enhance efficiency and productivity across sales teams. This initiative underscores Microsoft's commitment to integrating advanced AI solutions into business processes, offering organizations innovative tools to optimize their sales strategies.

Here’s what you need to know:

• AI Accelerator for Sales: Launching on April 1, 2025, this exclusive program helps customers experience a new way of working with Copilot and AI agents.

• Sales Agent: This agent automates lead research, prioritization, meeting scheduling, and customer outreach, ensuring no lead is unattended.

• Sales Chat: This agent delivers actionable insights from CRM data, pitch decks, meetings, emails, and the web, allowing sales reps to spend less time searching and more time selling.

Power Apps February 2025 Updates

Microsoft has announced the general availability of Code View in Power Apps Studio, marking a significant advancement in their mission to enable seamless collaboration between citizen and professional developers. This update reflects Microsoft's commitment to enhancing user experience and productivity within the Power Platform ecosystem.

Here’s a summary of the new features:

• Code View: Work seamlessly with fellow developers in Power Apps Studio for faster, more efficient app creation.

• Power CAT Tools: Enhance your development across the Power Platform with a comprehensive suite of features.

• Power Fx functions: Easily create Power Fx functions for use in Canvas apps and Power Automate.

• Enterprise-grade Governance: Gain more control over critical environment settings with three powerful new rules for Environment Groups.

• Visualize with Copilot: Instantly transform business data into interactive charts for deeper insights.

Microsoft introduces .NET AI template preview to streamline AI development

Microsoft has unveiled the first preview of the .NET AI Template, marking a significant step toward simplifying AI integration for developers. This new initiative aims to streamline the process of building AI-powered applications within the .NET ecosystem. Stay tuned for more details on how this enhances AI development workflows.

Here’s how:

• Install the template: Run dotnet new install Microsoft.Extensions.AI.Templates in your terminal to make it available in Visual Studio, VS Code, or your working directory.

• In Visual Studio:

  • Go to File > New Project and search for AI Chat or select the AI project type.

  • Choose your project name and location, then select an AI model provider and vector store to begin.

• In VS Code with C# Dev Kit:

  • Install the C# Dev Kit extension.

  • Use the .NET New Project command to create a new project with GitHub Models.

Code View in Power Apps Studio now generally available for faster, collaborative development

Code View is now generally available in Power Apps Studio, making it easier than ever to collaborate and accelerate app development. This update enhances the development experience, giving teams more flexibility and control over their apps.

Here’s what’s new:

• Code View: Easily inspect the code for each control, making app functionality clearer and more accessible.

• Effortless Copy & Paste: Copy any control as YAML + Power Fx Code and paste it into a code editor for quick modifications. Plus, you can now copy and paste entire screens!

• Enhanced Code Format: Dataverse Source Control Integration lets you version-control your apps, while multi-screen snippets help you create reusable templates.

Microsoft introduces open-source AI evaluations for .NET with new tools and DevOps integration

Microsoft has introduced the AI Evaluations Library, a new tool designed to help developers assess the performance of AI models with ease. This release aims to streamline evaluation workflows, making it simpler to measure model accuracy and effectiveness. Whether you're optimizing existing AI solutions or developing new ones, this library provides a structured approach to ensure reliable results.

Here's what you need to know:

• Open-Source Library : The Microsoft.Extensions.AI.Evaluations library is now open source in the dotnet/extensions repo, giving developers greater flexibility to leverage AI effectively.

• GitHub Repository: New sample projects have been added to the library, providing both beginners and experienced developers with valuable insights and practical guidance.

• Azure DevOps Plug-in: Seamlessly integrate AI evaluations into your Azure DevOps pipeline, enabling continuous assessment of your AI models as part of your CI/CD workflows.

• Automated AI Evaluation: The AzDO plug-in streamlines the evaluation process, ensuring your applications meet performance criteria before deployment.

Microsoft releases new productivity features in Visual Studio

Microsoft Visual Studio just got even better with a fresh set of updates aimed at enhancing developer productivity. These improvements make coding more efficient and seamless, reinforcing Visual Studio’s commitment to delivering a top-tier development experience.

Here’s what’s new:

• Customize file encoding – Set a default file encoding for saving files, ensuring consistency with your preferred format.

• Indent word wrap – Gain greater control over wrapped lines in the editor with optional indentation for improved readability.

• Preserve font preferences across themes – Maintain your preferred font face and size, even when switching themes.

• Enhanced horizontal scrollbar – The scrollbar now repositions above the system tray for improved accessibility.

Microsoft increases the connection limits for custom Dynamics 365 Contact Center reports

Microsoft is making it easier for IT professionals to optimize their custom contact center reports in Dynamics 365. With increased connection limits, organizations can enhance reporting performance and scalability, ensuring smoother data analysis and decision-making. This update empowers businesses to gain deeper insights without constraints.

Here’s how you can increase the limit:

1. Download the Dynamics_365_Omnichannel_Realtime_Analytics schematic model from the Power BI portal and open it in Power BI Desktop.

2. Go to Options and Settings > Options.

3. Under DirectQuery, increase the Maximum connections value to above 300, then click OK.

4. Save and publish the schematic data model to the same workspace where you downloaded it.

5. Acknowledge the warning that this change will apply to all reports and dashboards referencing the model, then proceed with publishing.

Visual Studio enhances Git Integration for smarter code quality control

Microsoft is making it easier for developers to maintain high-quality code in Visual Studio with new enhancements to its Git integration. These improvements help catch potential issues earlier in the development process, streamlining workflows and reducing the risk of errors.

Here’s how the new feature works:

• AI-Powered Code Reviews – A new GitHub Copilot integration lets you review local changes before committing, helping you spot performance and security issues early.

• Seamless Integration – Enable it by navigating to:
  - Tools > Preview Features > Pull Request Comments
  - Tools > Options > GitHub > Copilot > Source Control Integration > Enable Git preview features

• Inline AI Suggestions – Once enabled, you'll see a sparkle comment button in the Git Changes window, which you can click to let Copilot analyze your code and provide inline feedback.

Microsoft announces the public preview of Data Exploration agent in Power Apps

Microsoft Power Apps continues to push the boundaries of AI-driven efficiency with its latest innovation. Designed to enhance user experience and streamline workflows, this new capability makes it easier than ever to interact with data in model-driven apps. Stay ahead of the curve with a smarter, more intuitive way to find the information you need.

• What it does: This powerful tool simplifies record searches by letting you use natural language instead of complex filters.

• How it works: Just describe what you're looking for using Copilot, and the agent will interpret your intent to deliver precisely filtered results.

• Availability: The Data Exploration Agent is available now via manual opt-in and is rolling out through the Monthly Channel under the "Natural Language Grid and View Search" admin setting.

Images can now be used in GitHub Copilot chat

Microsoft has introduced a new capability that allows users to attach images directly in conversations, making troubleshooting and collaboration more seamless than ever. This update opens up new possibilities for developers to communicate ideas more effectively within Copilot Chat.

Here’s how to use the feature:

- Enhance your queries by attaching images to better illustrate your ideas and get more relevant responses.

- Easily upload images by pasting from your clipboard or using the paperclip icon to select a file.

-Add context to your prompt—Copilot will analyze the image to provide more accurate assistance.

- Use cases: Perfect for UI development, debugging issues with error screenshots, or sharing design elements.

- Supported formats: PNG, JPG, and GIF, with up to three images per message.