Microsoft launches Scout AI assistant to automate workplace tasks

Key points

• By Kashmira Konduparty Microsoft has unveiled Scout, a new artificial intelligence assistant designed to operate continuously across a user’s digital workspace, marking the company’s latest efforts to expand beyond traditional chatbot experiences and into autonomous AI agents.
• The product was announced at Microsoft’s Build 2026 developer conference and is being made available through the company’s Frontier early-access program, according to a report TechCrunch.
• Built on the open-source OpenClaw framework, Scout is designed to function as an “always-on” assistant that can manage tasks across Microsoft’s ecosystem of workplace tools.
• Unlike Microsoft Copilot, which primarily responds to prompts within individual applications, Scout is intended to work across cloud, desktop and web environments while maintaining a persistent understanding of a user’s preferences, habits and ongoing projects.
• READ: Microsoft bets on AI agents with new platform Project Solara (June 3, 2026) According to Microsoft, Scout can connect to services including Outlook, Teams, OneDrive and...