- \n
- Microsoft Flow is being renamed to Microsoft Power Automate<\/strong>, to better align with the Microsoft Power Platform.<\/li>\n
- Robotic process automation (RPA) has been added to Microsoft Power Automate<\/strong>, delivering an end-to-end automation solution that spans AI, APIs, and UI on the Microsoft Power Platform.<\/li>\n
- Microsoft Power Virtual Agents<\/strong>\u2014a no-code\/low-code app that allows anyone to create and deploy intelligent AI-powered virtual agents.<\/li>\n
- A host of new security enhancements for Microsoft Power BI<\/strong>, that add industry leading data security capabilities no matter where your analytics data is used and accessed.<\/li>\n
- Tighter integration between the Microsoft Power Platform and Microsoft Teams, <\/strong>bringing the world\u2019s most popular collaboration app and the Power Platform closer together.<\/li>\n
- A new set of prebuilt models for AI Builder <\/strong>that add even more advanced AI models to Microsoft Power Automate and Microsoft Power Apps that are available to everyone.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
These new features and products substantially advance our vision for the Power Platform, an unmatched set of capabilities that enable everyone to analyze, act, and automate across their organization to transform businesses from the ground up.<\/p>\n
Be sure to watch my technology keynote today at Microsoft Ignite<\/a>\u00a0(or on-demand after the 11:00 AM presentation) for a deep dive into these new capabilities.<\/p>\n
Introducing RPA in Power Automate<\/h2>\n
One of the biggest challenges organizations face is scaling and automating business processes\u2014from digitizing pen and paper processes, to automating complex processes that span legacy and modern applications. Robotic process automation has rapidly become a key technology to address many of these scenarios but generally requires a patchwork of automation services that need integration and management before the real work can get done.<\/p>\n
Power Automate simplifies these end-to-end scenarios through a unified automation platform that can bridge the gap between API-based automation and UI-based automation.<\/p>\n
Today we\u2019re announcing the preview of our new RPA capability in Power Automate<\/strong><\/a> called UI flows<\/strong><\/a>. Creating a UI flow is a simple and familiar point-and-click, low-code experience that makes it easy for users to turn manual tasks into automated workflows by recording and playing back human-driven interaction with software systems that don\u2019t support API automation. Couple the capabilities of UI flows with Power Automate\u2019s prebuilt connectors for more than 275 widely-used apps and services<\/a> that support API automation, and you have an end-to-end automation platform capable of reinventing business processes for a wide range of workloads across industries.<\/p>\n
![\"Microsoft](\"https:\/\/cm-edgetun.pages.dev\/en-us\/power-platform\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/RPA-new.png\")
<\/p>\nFor example, let\u2019s say you work for an insurance claims processing company, where clients fill out digital forms, paper forms, or communicate through email. The claim is processed on modern cloud services while staff also maintain cumbersome paper records and legacy applications. With Power Automate, this entire process can be automated. Digitized data from scanned paper forms is processed with AI that recognizes forms, and old legacy systems can be automated with RPA\u2014one platform that brings both worlds together seamlessly.<\/p>\n
TruGreen, one of the largest lawn care companies in the U.S., recognizes the growing need for powerful automation capabilities.<\/p>\n
“The need for automation at TruGreen is growing quickly, and Power Automate is, and will continue to be an important part of accelerating TruGreen’s digital transformation journey. Power Automate will help us bridge the integration gap between legacy systems and modern applications. With the new UI flows RPA capabilities, we are excited to bring automation to legacy applications with no API capability.\u201d – Ayman Taha, CIO of TruGreen<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Take a closer look at UI flows in Power Automate<\/a> and sign up today for the UI flows preview<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Power Virtual Agents: Enable anyone to build a no-code\/low-code virtual agent<\/h2>\n
Microsoft Power Virtual Agents, now in preview, is a new offering\u00a0 that enables subject matter experts in your organization \u2013 such as customer service, sales, marketing, finance, or HR – to easily create virtual agents using a guided, no-code\/low-code point-and-click graphical interface without the need for data scientists or developers. Customer service questions and other types of external or internal inquiries at an organization can be serviced by a virtual agent, freeing up staff to focus on more complex tasks.<\/p>\n
![\"Microsoft](\"https:\/\/cm-edgetun.pages.dev\/en-us\/power-platform\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/Virtual-agent.png\")
<\/p>\nThere\u2019s no code to get started, no AI expertise needed, and you can be up and running in minutes. And because they\u2019re already integrated with Microsoft\u2019s Power Platform, you can use hundreds of prebuilt connectors so your virtual agents can talk to your backend systems with a few clicks \u2013 or easily add capabilities like using Microsoft Power Automate to call an API.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s more, if you want to add code or, say, some more complex capabilities, Azure Cognitive Services and Microsoft Bot Framework are fully integrated and just a few clicks away.<\/p>\n
Learn more about Power Virtual Agents and sign up for the preview<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Power BI security enhancements\u00a0\u2013\u00a0help\u00a0protect data wherever it\u2019s accessed<\/h2>\n
Organizations recognize the value of empowering their\u00a0employees to\u00a0embrace data-driven insights. Power BI helps customers drive\u00a0data\u00a0democratization\u00a0in their\u00a0organization because\u00a0it enables anyone to draw insights from data with easy-to-use data visualizations and analytics to guide business decisions. As customers empower every employee with Power BI, it is critical for them to ensure that they\u00a0better protect\u00a0their data\u00a0no matter where it is accessed.<\/p>\n
Today we\u2019re announcing\u00a0brand new capabilities\u00a0in\u00a0Power BI data protection.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/strong>These enhancements take advantage of Microsoft world-class security capabilities, enabling organizations to:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Classify and label sensitive Power BI data\u00a0<\/strong>using\u00a0the\u00a0same\u00a0familiar\u00a0Microsoft Information Protection sensitivity labels\u00a0used in Office.<\/li>\n
- Enforce governance policies even when Power BI content is exported\u00a0<\/strong>to Excel, PowerPoint, or PDF,\u00a0to\u00a0help\u00a0ensure\u00a0data is\u00a0protected\u00a0even when it\u00a0leaves\u00a0Power BI.<\/li>\n
- Monitor and protect user activity on sensitive data in real time\u00a0<\/strong>with alerts, session monitoring, and risk remediation using Microsoft Cloud App\u00a0Security.<\/li>\n
- Empower security administrators\u00a0<\/strong>who use\u00a0data\u00a0protection reports and security investigation capabilities\u00a0with\u00a0Microsoft Cloud App Security to enhance organizational oversight.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Now in preview, these capabilities engage when Power BI is paired with Microsoft Information Protection and Microsoft Cloud App Security.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n
Avanade, a management consulting company, recognizes the importance of powerful data security solutions.<\/p>\n
\u201cChanging user behavior is difficult, but having Microsoft Information Protection data protection capabilities available to users directly within Power BI, a tool we use daily, greatly increases our confidence that our documents will be labeled and protected correctly,\u201d said Cem Urfalioglu, Director of Avanade ITS.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
In addition to these security updates, major advances in AI and natural language, Power BI integration with Azure Synapse Analytics, and more are now available. Read more about all of these enhancements<\/a> and to\u00a0learn how to\u00a0gain invaluable insights\u00a0while keeping\u00a0sensitive\u00a0data\u00a0more\u00a0secure.<\/p>\n
Teams and Power Platform empower workers to collaborate in a data-driven business<\/h2>\n
As organizations encourage a data-driven culture, it\u2019s important they break down silos and ensure that the right people in the organization have the data they need to be involved in the decision-making process. The pairing of Teams and Power Platform brings together the best of workplace collaboration and data-driven business into one place.<\/p>\n
Bringing Power Platform applications to Teams means users\u2019 dashboards, apps, and automations are available within Teams, so they are easier to find, share, and use on an everyday basis. The conversational nature of Teams enhances how users interact with Power Platform applications. For example, adaptive cards and bots let users engage with these tools directly through conversation. This integration also provides IT Administrators with high fidelity control and prioritization of features.<\/p>\n
Power Apps<\/strong><\/a> creators can now publish their apps directly to their company\u2019s app library in Teams, making them more discoverable to users and improving the experience of adding these apps to Teams. By the end of 2019, users will be able to pin Power Apps to their Teams left rail, providing easy access to regularly used apps.<\/p>\n
New triggers and actions for Power Automate<\/strong><\/a> are now available within Teams. These capabilities streamline the completion of common team and personal tasks, such as scheduling focus time and automating document approvals.<\/p>\n
New features coming to Power BI<\/strong><\/a> in 2020 include the ability to create rich adaptive cards in Teams conversations, which help users see and act on their data. An improved Power BI tab experience in Teams will also make selecting the correct reports easier than ever.<\/p>\n
The American Red Cross is leveraging Power Platform integration with Teams to improve disaster response times.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we respond to disasters, we have to ensure communication and understanding both internally and with external partners. Workplace collaboration tools like Microsoft Teams and Microsoft Power BI enable different groups to exchange information and collaborate quickly when it\u2019s needed most. Being able to pair that with tools made in Power Apps also helps us gather important data so we\u2019re making informed decisions to better help people in need.\u201d – Denise Everhart, American Red Cross Division Disaster Executive \u2013 Pacific Division.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Learn more about the enhanced Power Platform integration within Teams<\/a>.<\/p>\n
AI Builder \u2013 unlock new low-code and no-code AI scenarios<\/h2>\n
AI Builder<\/strong><\/a> is the no-code AI capability for Power Apps and Power Automate, made generally available on October 1st<\/sup>. It enables organizations to tailor AI to their specific business needs and their unique data without the need to hire data scientists or pro-developers to make their apps and processes more intelligent. \u00a0AI Builder takes common AI scenarios and provides point-and-click solutions for app makers to solve everyday tasks like forms processing, object detection, and text and binary classification.<\/p>\n
Today, we\u2019re introducing a new set of prebuilt AI models for the Power Platform. For business users, having prebuilt AI models means they don\u2019t have to gather data, build, or train their models. Now available in preview, these prebuilt scenarios include:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Key phrase extraction<\/strong>\u2014 identifies the main talking points from your text<\/li>\n
- Language detection<\/strong>\u2014identifies the predominant language from your text<\/li>\n
- Text recognition<\/strong>\u2014extracts embedded, printed, and handwritten text from images into machine-readable character streams<\/li>\n
- Sentiment analysis<\/strong>\u2014detects positive, negative, neutral, or mixed sentiment in social media, customer reviews, or any text data<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Learn more about the new prebuilt scenarios<\/a><\/p>\n
Learn more about AI Builder in this post<\/a><\/p>\n
Take a closer look at the new Power Platform enhancements<\/p>\n
Browse the release notes<\/a> and watch my technology keynote<\/a> live or on-demand to learn more about these new updates.<\/p>\n
- Language detection<\/strong>\u2014identifies the predominant language from your text<\/li>\n
- Enforce governance policies even when Power BI content is exported\u00a0<\/strong>to Excel, PowerPoint, or PDF,\u00a0to\u00a0help\u00a0ensure\u00a0data is\u00a0protected\u00a0even when it\u00a0leaves\u00a0Power BI.<\/li>\n
- Robotic process automation (RPA) has been added to Microsoft Power Automate<\/strong>, delivering an end-to-end automation solution that spans AI, APIs, and UI on the Microsoft Power Platform.<\/li>\n