For years, July brought a Dynamics 365 release wave 2 plan and October brought the features in it. In 2026 that pattern has ended. Microsoft has retired the twice-yearly release plan and now publishes upcoming Dynamics 365 capabilities continuously on a single roadmap. This article explains what replaced release wave 2, what's new across Dynamics 365 Sales, Customer Service and Field Service, and how UK businesses should keep track of change from here.
Published October 2026: Microsoft did not publish a 2026 release wave 2 plan for Dynamics 365. This article covers the customer engagement capabilities Microsoft has announced and released through 2026, and what's due next.
Is there a Dynamics 365 2026 release wave 2?
Not in the form you'll be used to. In August 2026 Microsoft announced that Dynamics 365, Power Platform and Dataverse roadmap content would join the AI at Work roadmap, the same roadmap that already covers Microsoft 365 and Copilot. Alongside that, it retired the release wave 1 and release wave 2 model in favour of publishing new capabilities as soon as plans are committed. Microsoft has confirmed there is no 2026 release wave 2 plan.
The change affects how Microsoft communicates, not how it ships. Microsoft says products with established release schedules will keep to them, Message Center remains the place for changes that affect your tenant, and Microsoft Learn remains the home for documentation.
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| September 2026 | New Dynamics 365, Power Platform and Dataverse capabilities start appearing on the AI at Work roadmap. No new release plans are published. |
| September to November 2026 | Existing roadmap items with a public preview or general availability date of 1 June 2026 or later move across to the AI at Work roadmap. |
| By 15 November 2026 | The Dynamics 365 Release Planner retires. The AI at Work roadmap becomes the main public source of roadmap information. |
What changes for you in practice?
On the positive side, capabilities should appear on the roadmap sooner than they did under the wave calendar, and each item now shows its progress through three stages: In Development, Rolling Out and Launched. You can filter the roadmap to the products you use, export views to CSV and subscribe to updates by RSS. Microsoft has also released a Release Communications MCP Server, so teams can pull roadmap data into their own AI tools.
The loss is the fixed planning moment. Release waves gave businesses two natural points a year to review what was coming. Microsoft's own advice is to replace them with a monthly or quarterly review built on a saved filter and an RSS feed. One practical point: personalised saved views in the Release Planner won't carry over, so export anything you rely on before 15 November 2026.
What's new in Dynamics 365 Sales?
The biggest change this year sits partly outside Dynamics 365 itself. In July 2026 Microsoft made Sales Agent generally available in Microsoft 365 Copilot. It brings account history, deal context and suggested next steps into a chat a seller can use in Outlook, Teams, Copilot or Dynamics 365. At the same time, Microsoft 365 Copilot became generally available inside Dynamics 365 Sales, so the same agent works consistently in both places, grounded in your CRM data.
Within Dynamics 365 Sales, the features on Microsoft's last published plan have continued to land through 2026. They include sales operations insights in the Sales Research Agent, AI-powered meeting intelligence that enriches opportunity records, the ability to copy opportunities for repeat deals, and creating records through the Sales agent. Two further items were planned for general availability in October 2026: portfolio planning in the Sales Research Agent, and simpler Quick Campaigns for one-off bulk email.
Source: What's new and planned for Dynamics 365 Sales, Microsoft Learn
What's new in Dynamics 365 Customer Service?
Service Agent reached general availability alongside Sales Agent. It gives service staff case context, AI-assisted resolution and suggested responses drawn from your knowledge sources, again across Microsoft 365 and Dynamics 365. Microsoft 365 Copilot is also now generally available inside Dynamics 365 Customer Service.
Inside the Customer Service application, Microsoft has spent 2026 deepening the four agents that became generally available in October 2025:
- Case Management Agent: creates and updates cases and helps move them through to resolution
- Customer Intent Agent: works out what the customer actually needs and routes it accordingly
- Quality Evaluation Agent: assesses the quality of service interactions
- Customer Knowledge Management Agent: keeps knowledge articles current for staff and self-service
The 2026 updates add richer telemetry, tighter Copilot integration and support for both semi-autonomous and fully autonomous workflows. In practice, you can now choose how far each agent acts on its own and how much it hands back to a person.
Dynamics 365 plugins for Copilot Cowork
When Microsoft made Copilot Cowork generally available in June 2026, it also released Dynamics 365 Sales and Dynamics 365 Customer Service plugins for it. Cowork is where people delegate multi-step work, and the plugins let it read and update Dynamics 365 records as part of that work, drawing on records, knowledge, email and meetings. Typical uses include preparing for a complex deal with several stakeholders or managing a service escalation across teams. The plugins are managed from the Microsoft 365 admin centre like any other Copilot plugin.
The cost model matters here. Since Microsoft restructured Copilot on 25 September 2026, Cowork is billed by usage rather than included in the per-user Copilot licence. Before switching on the Dynamics 365 plugins, set spending policies and decide who can use them. We explain the new billing in The new Microsoft Copilot: what Home, Code and Autopilot mean for UK SMEs.
What's new in Dynamics 365 Field Service?
Since the end of May 2026, back-office users, dispatchers and service managers can use Microsoft 365 Copilot in the Field Service web app to query work orders, bookings, service history and assets in plain language. Questions such as "are there unscheduled high-priority work orders?" return answers grounded in your Dataverse data. It's web-only and is switched on through standard Power Apps configuration.
The Scheduling Operations Agent is where most of the development is happening, but it's worth being clear about status. Optimising schedules for several resources at once entered public preview on 30 June 2026: up to five resources directly from the schedule board, or up to 30 through an optimisation plan, with custom goals and weightings. Automatically scheduling and applying recurring optimisations entered public preview on 30 September 2026. Both are previews, so they belong in a test environment rather than live dispatch for now.
What this means for UK SMEs
The direction is clear. Microsoft is moving sales and service work into agents that operate across Dynamics 365 and Microsoft 365, rather than keeping them inside the CRM screens. That brings three practical considerations.
First, agents are only as good as the data behind them. Duplicate accounts, stale opportunities and thin case histories will show up quickly in what Sales Agent or Service Agent tells your team. Second, licensing now spans two estates, Microsoft 365 Copilot and Dynamics 365, with some capabilities billed by usage, so costs need modelling across both. Third, the distinction between preview and general availability matters more than ever when features appear on a rolling roadmap rather than in a single plan.
How to keep track of Dynamics 365 changes now
With no release wave plan to read, we recommend:
- Setting up a filtered view of the AI at Work roadmap for the Dynamics 365 apps you use, and subscribing to it by RSS
- Agreeing a monthly or quarterly review with the people who own your CRM processes
- Exporting any saved views from the Release Planner before it retires on 15 November 2026
- Keeping an eye on Message Center for changes that will reach your environment
- Testing preview features in a sandbox before planning around them
- Reviewing CRM data quality before piloting Sales Agent, Service Agent or the Cowork plugins
Talk to Advantage About Dynamics 365
Advantage is a Microsoft Solutions Partner supporting SMEs across the UK with Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement, Power Platform and Microsoft 365. We help businesses decide which new capabilities are worth adopting, prepare their data and processes, and keep licensing costs under control. If you'd like to understand what this year's changes mean for your Dynamics 365 setup, we're happy to talk it through.
Call us on 020 3004 4600, email hello@advantage.co.uk, or request a conversation with our team.
Related Resources
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement
Business Central 2026 release wave 2 (BC29): what's new for UK businesses
The new Microsoft Copilot: what Home, Code and Autopilot mean for UK SMEs
Microsoft 365 Copilot Readiness Assessment
Microsoft 365 & Copilot
Frequently asked questions about Dynamics 365 2026 release wave 2
Common questions about what replaced the 2026 release wave 2 plan, what's new in Dynamics 365 Sales, Customer Service and Field Service, and how UK businesses should plan.
Is there a Dynamics 365 2026 release wave 2 plan?
No. Microsoft retired the twice-yearly release wave model in September 2026 and confirmed there would be no 2026 release wave 2 plan. New Dynamics 365 capabilities are now published on the AI at Work roadmap as soon as they are committed.
What is the AI at Work roadmap?
The AI at Work roadmap is Microsoft's single public roadmap for Microsoft 365, Copilot, Dynamics 365, Power Platform and Dataverse. Each item shows whether it is In Development, Rolling Out or Launched, and you can filter it, export it to CSV and subscribe by RSS.
When does the Dynamics 365 Release Planner retire?
Microsoft plans to retire the Release Planner by 15 November 2026. Personalised saved views will not carry over to the AI at Work roadmap, so export anything you need before then.
Are Sales Agent and Service Agent generally available?
Yes. Microsoft made Sales Agent and Service Agent generally available in July 2026. They work in Microsoft 365 Copilot, Outlook, Teams and Dynamics 365, and Microsoft 365 Copilot is also generally available inside Dynamics 365 Sales and Customer Service.
What are the Dynamics 365 plugins for Copilot Cowork?
They connect Copilot Cowork to Dynamics 365 Sales and Customer Service so it can read and update CRM records as part of multi-step work, such as preparing for complex deals or handling service escalations. They are managed from the Microsoft 365 admin centre.
Is Copilot Cowork included in the Microsoft 365 Copilot licence?
Since Microsoft restructured Copilot on 25 September 2026, Cowork is billed by usage rather than included in the per-user Copilot licence. Set spending policies before enabling it or the Dynamics 365 plugins.
Is AI scheduling in Dynamics 365 Field Service ready for live use?
The newest Scheduling Operations Agent capabilities are in public preview. Optimising multiple resources entered preview on 30 June 2026, and automated recurring optimisations on 30 September 2026. Preview features should be tested outside production.
How should we plan for Dynamics 365 updates without release waves?
Set up a filtered AI at Work roadmap view with an RSS feed, hold a monthly or quarterly review, watch Message Center for changes to your environment, and test preview features in a sandbox before planning around them.
