Microsoft has launched Scout, a new AI assistant inspired by the OpenClaw project, designed to integrate with the Microsoft 365 ecosystem. Built on the OpenClaw framework, Scout is an always-on agentic assistant that works alongside users with a persistent identity and style. Users can name their own Scout instance, such as Sebastian in a demo, and provide ongoing feedback on tasks they want automated. The assistant is intended to actively adapt to the user’s needs, as explained by Scout VP Omar Shahine. "We all have our interesting quirks in how we work, and people are codifying those patterns into memories and skills that persist in their agent," Shahine said. "Then the agent becomes more capable, better understanding you and gaining more agency and exercising judgments." Scout is available through Microsoft’s Frontier program, which provides early access to experimental products, and requires a GitHub Copilot subscription to use. The assistant operates across desktop and web browser, making it easy to connect to inboxes, calendars, and other systems. It comes with prepackaged skills for calendar management and drafting meeting agendas, but Shahine emphasized that the real value lies in the skills users develop over time. The customization loop, where the assistant learns from user behavior and becomes more capable, is a key factor in making consumer AI tools sticky. The more users invest in training their assistant, the harder it is to walk away. The system also includes extensive security protections to address concerns about unsupervised AI agents, a problem highlighted by OpenClaw earlier this year when an agent was reported to have acted erratically in a researcher’s inbox. Scout features a built-in "policy conformance system" that continuously checks whether the system is operating according to set guidelines, with each check producing an audit trail. Scout is part of a range of AI products Microsoft launched at its annual Build developer conference, including Project Solara, an update to Copilot, and a new reasoning AI model.

Source: techcrunch