Microsoft 365 Copilot, Gemini, ChatGPT and Claude · Practical walkthrough

Check which AI features your work accounts include

Someone asks whether the team needs an AI budget next year. Before anyone answers, find out what the organisation already pays for: most teams have more switched on than they realise, and less than the vendor emails imply.

Task by Task5 min read

What you'll make

a short register of the AI features your work accounts show, with questions for the people who can confirm them.

What you'll need

your work accounts, an AI chat allowed to handle internal notes, and about 30 minutes. Record account types, never credentials or screenshots containing personal details.

Example result.

Tool	Observed	Ask the owner
Microsoft 365	M365 Copilot (Basic); Word button missing	Check app setup
ChatGPT	Business workspace listed	Confirm permitted work

1. Record the labels, then organise your notes

Start with three tools you use. Copy the exact labels; keep the plan, administrator settings and app availability separate.

In Microsoft 365, open m365.cloud.microsoft and read the account label at the bottom. In ChatGPT, read your workspaces in the web profile menu or mobile sidebar. Note observations, then ask:

Turn these notes into a short AI-feature register for my team.
For each tool list: exact account label; feature observed; entitlement
confirmed by an owner or still unknown; question; person who can confirm.
Use only the notes. A missing button is not proof of a missing licence.
Keep unknowns as questions. Do not name prices or recommend purchases.
NOTES: [my observations]

Why this works: a missing button can mean a setup or rollout issue. It does not establish that you need another licence.

What you should see: exact labels and observations, with unknowns left open.

2. Check the register against your accounts

Compare each entry with the screen you recorded. Use the optional product checks below if you need help finding the label. An unaided chat answer does not establish your organisation’s licences.

Why this works: exact observations give the owner something they can verify.

What you should see: every claim traced to your notes and every unknown still a question.

3. Confirm the gaps before discussing a purchase

Read the register against your screens. Send each unresolved question to the named account owner or IT contact. Ask them to distinguish the plan, the settings and feature availability. Add their answer and its date to the record.

Only then use the register in a budget discussion. A feature that works may still be unsuitable for a customer document. Ask which work is allowed separately from whether the button exists.

Why this works: observation, entitlement and permission answer different questions. Keeping them separate prevents a useful-looking summary becoming a licence audit.

What you should see: confirmed entries with their source, plus a short list of unanswered questions.

Check the result

Every product label matches a screen or an owner’s answer.
No unknown has become a purchase requirement.
Each missing button has a question and an owner.
The record states which work the organisation allows.

The usual failure: “No Copilot button in Word” becomes “Buy a Copilot licence”. Compare that conclusion with the account label before relying on it.

The register records [observation], not a confirmed missing entitlement.
Move the purchase conclusion to an open question for [owner]. Keep the
exact account label and check the other rows for the same mistake.

[observation] is the fact from your notes; [owner] is who can confirm it.

Worked example

Fictional example. An operations lead records:

Microsoft 365: M365 Copilot (Basic). No Word button on my laptop.
Colleagues can see it. IT service desk can check the app setup.
ChatGPT: personal workspace and Northfield Business are listed.
Workspace owner must confirm which work belongs in Business.

The first register says “Copilot licence needed for Word”. The repair changes it to “M365 Copilot (Basic) observed; ask IT why Word differs”. Microsoft’s label guide describes standard app access for that label, so the missing button needs investigation rather than a purchasing conclusion.

The ChatGPT row stays a separate permission question. A Business workspace in the menu does not by itself establish that every client file may go there.

Go deeper

Read the Microsoft labels accurately

Copilot Chat (Basic) means no add-on and no Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint or OneNote. M365 Copilot (Basic) means no add-on but standard access in those apps. M365 Copilot (Premium) means the add-on with priority access. Record the exact label and ask IT about app differences; language, rollout and configuration still matter.

Check Google and Claude without guessing

In Gmail or Docs, look for Ask Gemini, then ask the administrator for the Workspace edition and compare it with Google’s feature table. A button is an observation, not the full entitlement record. In Claude, note whether you are in a personal account or organisation and ask its owner to confirm plan and seat. Settings › Usage describes usage; it is not a complete list of entitlements.

Keep the previous register

Record who confirmed an entry and when. Before renewal, repeat the checks that affect the decision and note what changed. Include paid tools outside the main suites, such as meeting recorders, with their contract owner and unanswered questions.