Microsoft is building an OpenClaw-like AI agent for Copilot with enterprise security in mind

Microsoft Copilot Gets OpenClaw-Like Capabilities for Enterprise

Microsoft is testing ways to integrate OpenClaw-like features into its existing Microsoft 365 Copilot tool, marking another significant push into agentic AI 1

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. Omar Shahine, Microsoft's corporate vice president, confirmed to The Information that the company is exploring the potential of technologies like OpenClaw in an enterprise context 3

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. The new features would be geared towards enterprise customers, with better security controls than the famously risky open source OpenClaw agent 1

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OpenClaw is a tool that runs locally on a user's computer and can create AI agents to perform tasks on behalf of the person. The platform catapulted agentic AI into the spotlight after its release, though it has since raised serious security concerns due to virtually no security or privacy measures in place 2

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. Sources tell The Information that Microsoft is confident it can implement safer versions of the tool 3

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Always-On Autonomous AI Agents for Enhanced Task Automation

The test reportedly comes as part of efforts to make Microsoft 365 Copilot run autonomously around the clock while completing tasks on behalf of users 3

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. One of the main features of this AI agent is that it would essentially be a version of 365 Copilot that is always working, able to take actions at any time 1

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. The idea is an agent that can complete multi-step tasks over long periods 1

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The always-on version of 365 Copilot could reportedly do things like monitor a user's Outlook inbox and calendar and serve up a list of suggested tasks each day 3

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. An agentic version of Microsoft Copilot may be able to dip into your email and calendar to generate a to-do list for you each day, with this likely being just the beginning of the tool's functions 2

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Role-Specific Agents with Robust Security Controls

Microsoft is also exploring OpenClaw-like agents tailored to certain roles, such as marketing, sales, and accounting, to limit the permissions the agent needs, siloing them from other parts of a business 3

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. The proposed agentic platform could bring proactive AI experience to workers who, if they choose Microsoft's AI today, only have reactive assistants 4

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Data security is the highlight of this update, with plans to add strict controls, limited access, and proper tracking 5

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. This will help companies feel safe while using autonomous AI agents for important workflows. Microsoft is targeting agents that are safer than competition, with access control and permissions on a per-agent basis, treating AI agents increasingly like humans 4

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Microsoft's Expanding Agent Ecosystem

If Microsoft does come up with its own version of a Claw—meaning an OpenClaw-like agent that runs locally—the effort would join a number of other agentic tools the company has announced in the past few months 1

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. In March, Microsoft announced Copilot Cowork, which is designed to take actions in M365 apps, not just provide search results or chat in a separate work pane 1

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. Cowork is powered by its own WorkIQ technology, an intelligence layer that tries to personalize Cowork for the user across Microsoft 365 Copilot apps.

Microsoft has also tapped Anthropic Claude to power Cowork, after it partnered with the AI lab late last year 1

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. While OpenClaw can work with multiple models, Claude remains the model of choice for many users of the open source project. However, Cowork doesn't run on local hardware; it runs in the cloud as a cloud-based tool. In February, Microsoft also introduced Copilot Tasks, another agent designed to complete tasks, which was released at the time in preview 1

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Build Conference Reveal and Competitive Positioning

The company is expected to show off this new Claw or an upgraded version of one of its existing Claw-like tools at its Microsoft Build conference in June 1

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. Microsoft aims to show off some of these features during its Build conference, which kicks off on June 2nd 3

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. More details may come at the Microsoft Build event in June, where the company may show how this new AI agent works or improve its current Copilot features .

Compared with other hyperscalers and AI companies, Microsoft initially fell short on the AI front. ChatGPT is still, by far, the most popular AI chatbot, accounting for four in five sessions globally 4

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. Bringing OpenClaw-like capabilities into Copilot could help Microsoft reclaim some of the customers it lost to rival services 3

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. The company recently confirmed the launch of a new E7 tier, which bundles parts of M365, Copilot and Agent 365 for a new world in which bosses are expected to manage humans and AI agents simultaneously 4

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. Microsoft also recently declared Copilot users had grown 160% year-over-year, and daily active users were up ten times 4

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It's unclear whether the company would target local or cloud-based agents, or a hybrid of the two, though the Microsoft OpenClaw AI agent may work smartly by using both cloud and local systems for local processing 5

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. Local use can ensure the safety of important information and also speed up the system. Many companies now demand AI agents that can work without constant input, as these tools save time by handling simple and repetitive tasks 5

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. This shows how AI is changing office work, with AI agents not just for answering questions now but able to do real tasks and help people finish work faster with smarter functionality 5

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