Microsoft wants to increase the use of Copilot by integrating it into messaging applications such as WhatsApp, Messenger or Telegram.
The company launched the Copilot bot on the Telegram app. The bot requires your phone number and only works outside the EU, but it brings Copilot to Telegram for free.
The Copilot bot for Telegram is part of Microsoft's new project called Copilot For Social Copilot For Social, which aims to bring generative AI to social apps like WhatsApp and Telegram.
It is not clear if a Copilot bot for WhatsApp is in development. Microsoft has launched an official Copilot bot for Telegram, which you can find by searching @CopilotOfficialBotCopilotOfficialBot.
Although the bot has received a verified badge from Telegram, it is still in beta.
The Copilot bot runs on Telegram in the US, UK and Asia. It is available via computer, mobile phone and online.
Telegram's Copilot software asks you to enter your phone number, which Microsoft says it requires for security reasons and does not store for other purposes.
“To ensure a secure experience, we only want to verify the mobile phone number associated with your Telegram account once,” Microsoft said in a message that appears in Telegram when users launch the bot. "We do not store your phone number."
Microsoft requires users to provide a phone number to verify account location. If Microsoft detects an EU country code, it blocks the bot from using it.
The Copilot bot for Telegram doesn't have the same features as the web or Windows version and is fine for most tasks, although you can't create images with the bot and it doesn't appear to use ChatGPT -4o.
The bot is based on ChatGPT-4 and Microsoft's internal model and cannot switch between three modes: creativity, balance and accuracy.
Microsoft says you can ask the bot anything, even if it's not multimedia, because it only accepts text requests.
The bot acts as a one-on-one conversation between you and it. You can ask a question or send a follow-up message and the bot will respond.
You can use it to look up facts, plan a trip, create a fitness plan, and learn about movies, games, and entertainment.
Microsoft has limited Copilot usage in Telegram to 30 times per day.