Does Copilot in Power BI work in languages other than English?

Yes. Copilot understands and answers in multiple languages, both for natural language questions and narrative summaries. Answer quality depends more on the tidiness of the semantic model — measure names, descriptions, synonyms — than on the language.

What license do I need to use Copilot in Power BI?

Copilot requires Microsoft Fabric capacity F64 or higher, or Premium capacity. It is not available on individual Power BI Pro licenses. Before purchasing, validate which specific features you'll use and whether the capacity cost is justified versus alternatives.

Can Copilot create a complete dashboard automatically?

It can generate an initial draft from a description, but the result needs redesign: it doesn't know the business priorities or the company's visual conventions. It's useful as a starting point and as a DAX assistant, not as a replacement for professional report design.

Power BI

Copilot in Power BI: What It Does Well, What It Overpromises, and How to Get Value

Okun Data Team · April 22, 2026 · 6 min read

Microsoft has woven Copilot through its entire ecosystem, and Power BI is no exception. The promise is seductive: describe the report you want in one sentence and let AI build it. After working alongside it in real projects for over a year, we can offer a nuanced verdict: Copilot genuinely helps — just not where the marketing says.

What it does well

Narrative summaries: the Copilot narrative visual generates text summaries of what a report shows — useful for executives who'd rather read three sentences than interpret eight charts. Probably the best value-for-effort feature.
Natural language questions: asking "which 5 customers had the biggest sales drop this quarter?" and getting the visual instantly. Works well when the data model is tidy and measures have clear names.
DAX assistance: explaining what an existing measure does, or drafting a new one from a description. For anyone learning DAX, it's a real accelerator.
Synonyms and the semantic model: Copilot helps document the model, which in turn improves the AI's own answers. A virtuous circle.

What it overpromises

"Create a complete report with one sentence": it does generate one — but the result is a generic draft that always needs redesign. Copilot doesn't know your business, your priorities or your company's visual conventions. It works as a non-blank starting point; it doesn't replace design judgment.

"Automatic" root-cause analysis: the explanations it offers are descriptive correlations, not diagnoses. "Sales fell because of the South region" is a fact, not a cause. Causal analysis still requires someone who knows the operation.

The requirement nobody mentions first: the data model

The quality of Copilot's answers depends directly on the quality of the underlying semantic model. Well-related tables, measures with business names ("Gross margin %", not "M_GM_v2"), descriptions filled in, synonyms defined. A messy model produces erratic answers — and users who lose trust in the tool at the first absurd response.

The irony is obvious: for AI to save you work, you first have to do the usual work well. Our approach in business intelligence projects is exactly that: solid model first, AI on top.

Licensing: read before you sign

Copilot in Power BI requires Fabric capacity (F64 or higher) or Premium — it is not included in standard Pro licenses. For a small or mid-sized business, that licensing jump can be significant, so it's worth evaluating whether the features you'll actually use justify it, or whether AI models connected outside the Microsoft ecosystem solve the same needs at lower cost.

Conclusion

Copilot in Power BI is a good copilot and a poor pilot. It accelerates analysts who already know what they're doing, improves the business-user experience with summaries and natural language Q&A, and helps people learn DAX. It doesn't design quality reports on its own, nor does it replace causal analysis. If your data model is tidy and your licensing allows it, it's worth turning on; if not, cleaning up the model first is the better investment.

Want to leverage AI in your Power BI reports?

We'll show you what Copilot can do with your real data — and whether your current licensing supports it.

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Frequently asked questions

Does Copilot in Power BI work in languages other than English?: Yes. Copilot understands and answers in multiple languages, both for natural language questions and narrative summaries. Answer quality depends more on the tidiness of the semantic model — measure names, descriptions, synonyms — than on the language.
What license do I need to use Copilot in Power BI?: Copilot requires Microsoft Fabric capacity F64 or higher, or Premium capacity. It is not available on individual Power BI Pro licenses. Before purchasing, validate which specific features you'll use and whether the capacity cost is justified versus alternatives.
Can Copilot create a complete dashboard automatically?: It can generate an initial draft from a description, but the result needs redesign: it doesn't know the business priorities or the company's visual conventions. It's useful as a starting point and as a DAX assistant, not as a replacement for professional report design.