Microsoft and AWS announce major updates to Microsoft 365 productivity tools

Microsoft is introducing Regular Expressions (Regex) support to Excel in its August 2026 build. This update adds a new ‘Match Mode 3’ to the XLOOKUP and XMATCH functions, allowing users to use complex search patterns directly within formulas. Additionally, three new functions for Regex testing, extraction, and replacement are being added to Excel for Microsoft 365 and Excel for the Web, aiming to reduce the need for complex helper columns or external scripts.

Separately, Amazon Web Services (AWS) has announced the general availability of Amazon Quick Extensions for the Microsoft 365 suite. These extensions integrate services such as Salesforce, Jira, Slack, and SharePoint directly into Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook. The tools support agentic functions, such as summarizing emails in Outlook or automating slide generation in PowerPoint. The extensions are available across seven AWS regions through the Microsoft 365 Admin Center, with pricing tiers ranging from $20 to $40 per user per month.