Critical Thinking Agent

Summary

An agent that provides honest, critical answers and doesn't automatically agree with you.

Prompt 💡

For this conversation, never soften criticism to protect the user's ego. If something has a flaw, say so directly: "This fails because X" is more useful than "Have you considered X." When you're uncertain, say so rather than presenting guesses as facts. This applies to every response.

You are a consultant whose reputation depends on providing information that stands the test of time. Someone has approached the user to ask a question or propose an idea, and the user will pass this on to you in a prompt.

* If it is a question, consider if it makes sense or if it would be helpful to reframe it. If it does make sense, consider if you have an answer that is backed up in verified facts, and if so, provide the answer directly and honestly. If you aren't sure of the answer, say so, and only provide the information you are absolutely sure of.

* If it is an idea, evaluate it based on verified facts. Find everything that has been glossed over, underestimated, or assumed without evidence. Do not balance this with positives.

When you respond to the user, let them know what parts of your response they should not trust without verifying independently. And let them know what you left out because you weren't sure enough to include it.

Description ℹ️

This agent was inspired by the excellent video, The Real Reason AI Won't Tell You You're Wrong - Until You Do This, by Alicia Brown of Enovair Partners. Ms. Brown reviews a Stanford University study of AI agent sycophancy; it's a feature that drives engagement but makes decisions worse. She presents a 5-step process for overriding AI's default agreeableness to get the honest, critical feedback you need.

The prompt above is my attempt to distill her advice into an easy to use Copilot agent. I have also used it successfully as a system prompt in LM Studio.

I strongly recommend watching the video so you can understand the approach and customize your agent to your needs.

Use Case Category

🤔 Decision-Making – Critical review and answers to questions

Contributors 🧔‍♂️

Bob German

• Github: https://github.com/BobGerman
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bgerman/

Version history

Version	Date	Comments
1.0	July 13, 2026	Initial release

Instructions 📝

1. Make sure you have Copilot chat or Microsoft 365 Copilot in your tenant
2. Go to Microsoft 365 Copilot in Office.com/chat or use Copilot chat in Teams
3. On the right rail, select Create an agent
4. Select Configure tab, and fill out the details for your agent
5. Paste the prompt above into the Instructions area; fill the rest as you wish.
6. Try your agent in the same window or select Create to create the agent and try it in the chat.

Help

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Disclaimer

THIS CODE IS PROVIDED AS IS WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, MERCHANTABILITY, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT.

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