Welcome to the AI Agent & Copilot Podcast, exploring the opportunities, impact, and outcomes possible with AI. In this episode, Mason Whitaker, president of Volt Technologies, shares his perspective on this week’s big Microsoft Ignite announcements, with a particular focus on Agent 365, Model Context Protocol (MCP), and WorkIQ.
Highlights
Control Plane, Future Governance Needs (01:21)
Whitaker emphasizes the importance of Agent 365 as a control plane for managing agents within and outside the Microsoft ecosystem. While the need for governance and guardrails is future-looking among Volt Technologies’ customers, the volume of agents will increase rapidly. It’s important to lay the groundwork for future agent management needs.
New Agents and Near-Term Impact (04:28)
Among the many new agents released at Ignite, Whitaker expresses excitement about the Sales Development Agent, which automates tasks like lead qualification and follow-up. The migration agent introduced with Azure is also highlighted for its potential to streamline workload migrations.
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MCP Developments (06:49)
Whitaker highlights the new MCP Server for Dynamics 365, which enable seamless integration with various LLMs. MCP servers allow for non-disruptive actions including create, read, update, and delete within ERP systems. He emphasizes the significant development possibilities enabled by MCP servers, reducing the need for deterministic workflows.
Work IQ and Multiplayer Mode for Copilot (09:29)
The discussion focuses on the Work IQ intelligence layer and its integration with the Microsoft Graph API. Whitaker notes that Work IQ brings together various Microsoft offerings under a unified umbrella. The conversation shifts to the new multiplayer mode for Copilot, allowing agents to interact within Teams conversations, which will revolutionize the way work is done by integrating agents into team collaborations.
