Microsoft outlines OneDrive’s AI-driven push with Copilot tools, OCR, offline search, and new collaboration features across desktop and mobile.
Earlier today, we covered what’s coming next for Teams and Outlook based on the upcoming capabilities that Microsoft is tracking in its public roadmap. Now, the company has publicly shared what it’s planning for OneDrive.
In a detailed blog post, Microsoft has explained that its goal this year is to help you move faster from an initial to a “finished” state using AI and collaboration. A key ingredient in this process is the Copilot button which is easily accessible directly in OneDrive and can be leveraged to summarize content, review PDFs, and compare files. In addition, OneDrive now supports markdown (.md) files, which can be viewed and edited directly in the browser.
Other recent and upcoming capabilities include OCR integration for PDF files in OneDrive for mobile, offline search on iPad, and “hero link” – which is essentially a single link that you can use to control access to a particular piece of content. The ownership transfer process for departing employees has also been enhanced.
There are tons of improvements readily available for OneDrive on desktop too. Some may recall the OneDrive makeover on macOS, while IT admins on Windows can configure a group policy (GPO) to set a customized root name for the OneDrive directory to work around max path issues. Windows consumers on Copilot+ PCs can utilize semantic search in File Explorer, and everyone can also simply right-click a folder in File Explorer and immediately move it to OneDrive.
There are a couple of capabilities currently in preview too, scheduled to hit general availability eventually. The first offers support for up to one million items in OneDrive Sync on Windows, but you do need specific hardware and be enrolled in an Insider ring. The other, also available in public preview for Windows Insiders, is an Ask Copilot button on the File Explorer home page.
Microsoft has emphasized that all of the aforementioned features highlight its continued investment in making OneDrive your preferred solution for Microsoft 365 files. You can find out more details for OneDrive customer office hours here.
