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Note that at the time of publication, several Dynamics 365 applications have not yet been added to the AI at Work Roadmap. We’ll update this blog as Microsoft continues to add new products and features to this tool.
The tides are turning for how you receive information for your Microsoft business application updates. In the past. Microsoft published Release Wave plans to communicate updates to business applications like Dynamics 365 CRM, Business Central, and more. The twice-yearly Release Wave plans are being retired, 2026 Release Wave 1, which was released earlier this year, was the last Release plan.
You may be asking yourself: how will I stay aware of the new updates being implemented in my business systems? Microsoft has announced a new way to communicate and announce updates through the "AI at Work Roadmap." Although this is a change from what you may be familiar with, there is plenty to be excited about as this new phase of Microsoft's updated way of delivering information about Dynamics 365, Power Platform, and Dataverse takes shape.
What we cover:
What is the AI at Work Roadmap?
The AI at Work Roadmap will serve as a centralized location for tracking upcoming capabilities, rollout progress, and news, and preparing for new features across your Microsoft applications. Updates to your business applications will still launch and roll out as they always have, but you will receive news and announcements about system updates much sooner than before. New capabilities will now be published by Microsoft as soon as plans are committed and ready to share, rather than holding them for the next Release Wave.
What's not changing
This new Roadmap only changes how Microsoft communicates its upcoming updates to the public, not how products are built, released, or deployed. Products that already have an established release schedule will continue to follow those schedules. When you are ready to learn more about a new feature, Microsoft Learn will continue to be your go-to for product documentation and implementation guidance.
Image: The AI at Work Roadmap transition milestones. Image courtesy of Microsoft.
Why is this change taking place?
Now that you know what is (and isn't!) changing, let's discuss the why. Most organizations utilize a stack of Microsoft products, whether that's an ERP and CRM system, Power Apps, or some other mix-and-match of products. With the new Roadmap, product updates are no longer delivered in isolation from other features that would also be useful to you. Filter through the Roadmap to find the product updates that matter the most to you, or even download the Roadmap into a CSV file for quick, easy access to the updates you are looking for.
Roadmap walkthrough
The Roadmap will be a one-stop shop for the latest updates on Dynamics 365 CRM, Business Central, Copilot, and more. Once you arrive on the AI at Work webpage, click the "Jump to roadmap" button to skip straight to Roadmap. The interface shows where products are in their current stages, when you can expect releases, and where to go to learn more as you prepare to implement these features in your systems and workflows.
In the actual Roadmap, you can search and filter product updates and features by:
- Product type
- Status
- Platform
- Release phase
- New or updated
- Cloud instance
Image: The AI at Work Roadmap filter options. Image courtesy of Microsoft.
Navigating the Roadmap
Let's say you want to search for updates related to Dynamics 365 Customer Service, which is currently in development, is available in preview, and was added last month. You can use the following filters to locate what you are looking for:
1. Select the "Product" dropdown
The product filter lets you select the specific product you need. In this case, you would select Dynamics 365 Customer Service, but in other instances, you may want to search for products like Business Central or Dynamics 365 CRM. If you are looking for a full list of updates coming to your Microsoft stack, select multiple products to see everything you can expect, all in one place.
Note that at the time of publication, several Dynamics 365 applications have not yet been added to the Product filter. We’ll update this blog as Microsoft continues to add new products and features to this tool.
2. Select the "Status" dropdown
When you need to know the status of a specific update, you can easily see it with this filter.
“In development” will show you the features still being tested by Microsoft, “Rolling out” will show you the features that have begun rollout, and “Launched” will show you the features that are widely available to all application users. So if you were looking for Dynamics 365 Customer Service products that are still being worked on, you'd select the "In development" option in the status section.
3. Select the "Release phase" dropdown
In this section of the filter, you can select options such as preview, general availability, current channel, and others to see which release phase the new features are currently in. You'd select the preview option for our example, which shows you the Dynamics 365 Customer Service updates available for preview/testing in your systems before they're officially released to the general public.
4. Select the "New or updated" dropdown
Here is where you can decide whether you are looking for brand-new features that have just been announced, or features that have already been announced and are now being updated. You can even choose a timeframe to search within, like new within the last month, week, or ever (all). In our example, we’ll look for Dynamics 365 Customer Service features new within the last month.
Image: Using the filters in the AI at work Roadmap. Image courtesy of Microsoft
There are a few other useful filters you can use while researching your new features, such as Platform and Cloud instance options. The platform lets you sort through your products based on which platforms they are available on, such as:
- Developer
- Desktop
- Web
- Mobile
- And more
The cloud instance section lets you sort your list by whether products are specific to GCC, GCC High, or DoD-compliant cloud environments, or if they are applicable for standard cloud tenants.
Under the filter section, there will be a list of all new updates and products based on the filters you have selected. You will be able to see the product type, its current status, when it is expected to be available for preview, and its rollout start, all in the feature card. Once you click into the feature, you'll see more details about the release, including a quick summary of what it is and sharing options.
Image: The AI at Work Roadmap interface and feature updates. Image courtesy of Microsoft
AI at Work Roadmap page items
The AI at Work Roadmap page contains many other useful sections, which include:
- Latest announcements timeline
- Now available section
- Coming soon section
- Frontier program
- Additional resources
These other sections, while plenty helpful, are unlikely to be used as much as the actual Roadmap for getting your specific, personalized new feature updates and news. Be sure to give them a quick rundown; you never know what will end up being added to your processes.
Although the way Microsoft communicates these new updates is changing, most of your overall process and workflows for receiving business application updates will remain intact. You will simply have the benefit of receiving information throughout the year sooner and, all in one location, rather than semi-annually.
Still have questions? Our consultants have the answers to any other questions you may have.
All blogs and downloadable resources are written by real Syvantis team members with help from our expert consultants.
