From Idea to Agent: Building Your First Chatbot with Copilot Studio

AI chatbots are everywhere, but most IT teams haven’t had the chance to actually build one. This hands-on workshop changes that.
Led by the Joint Innovation in AI Team (JIAIT), a cross-unit collaboration focused on developing AI solutions for campus, this session explores how our team is designing and deploying chatbot solutions across real university use cases, including IT support, internal documentation, advising, and operational workflows.
We’ll start with a brief overview of lessons learned from building multiple agents using Copilot Studio, Illinois Chat, and custom code, including what works, what doesn’t, and where teams often get stuck.
In this 105-minute workshop, participants will create their own AI chatbot using Copilot Studio, with guided, step-by-step instruction from a team actively building agents in production environments.
By the end of the session, attendees will have a functional chatbot they can continue developing after the workshop, along with a clear understanding of how to apply these tools in their own environments.
This session is designed for IT professionals with little to no prior experience building AI agents who are ready to move from exploration to implementation.