Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit Doesn’t Have Copilot Studio Limitations

• The Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit is for pro developers building AI agents that work with M365 Copilot, Office apps, and other M365 services.
• It’s an alternative to Copilot Studio that gives developers more control over agent functionality, and it enables the creation of autonomous agents.
• It’s based on older technologies that have been evolved and renamed, which could cause confusion.

Agentic development is a Microsoft strategic initiative, but the company’s offerings continue to be confusing as they promise to enable many scenarios with a disjointed array of tools and technologies. The Microsoft 365 (M365) Agents Toolkit contains an SDK, extensions to Visual Studio (VS) and VS Code, and a “playground,” allowing pro developers to build agents with control over their underlying AI models and orchestration. However, deciphering the elements of the toolbox and comparing them with Microsoft Foundry (a broader AI pro developer offering) and Copilot Studio (a no- and low-code AI offering for citizen developers) can be daunting.