AI in the flow of work can be adopted in two common ways, according to Microsoft 365. In the first, an employee opens a separate chatbot in a browser tab, pastes in context, gets an answer, and copies it back into the document, with every use costing a context switch and a round of setup. In the second, assistance is built into tools already in use, so it can see the document, thread, or meeting being asked about; an employee can ask for a summary of a customer thread while looking at that thread, with no pasting and no re-explaining. Businesses that reach everyday usage almost always use the built-in pattern. Four shifts are underway: siloed data is giving way to intelligence reasoning across files, mail, and systems; app-by-app work is giving way to connected workflows; AI that answers questions is giving way to AI that completes tasks; and manual coordination is giving way to people and automated agents working the same process. Value keeps growing after the first few months as assistance learns style, tools, and data. Connectors extend reach to systems outside documents and email, including customer records and project trackers.