Microsoft announced on Monday that it has signed a large-scale procurement agreement with Vodafone Group Plc. Microsoft will use an AI assistant for the Office Copilot suite and launch a series of new AI tools to help employees create Excel charts, prioritize emails, and collaborate as a team.

According to Microsoft, Vodafone will purchase licenses for 68,000 company versions of the Copilot assistant. In early trials, it was found that employees saved about three hours of work time per person per week when using the Copilot assistant.

The number of Copilot customers increased by 60% last quarter.

Other Copilot customers include Honeywell International Inc. and Finastra Group Holdings Ltd., a financial services company. Microsoft stated that the number of Copilot customers in the last quarter increased by more than 60% compared to the previous quarter, and the number of customers with over 10,000 users doubled. However, the total number of customers was not disclosed by the company.

Microsoft has been incorporating AI technology from partner OpenAI into its product line. These new features are part of the 'second wave' of Copilot AI tools, specifically designed to provide powerful support for Teams, Word, Outlook, and other applications for enterprise users.

Analysts believe that connecting popular Office software with OpenAI's AI models distinguishes Microsoft's products in the market from competitors, including OpenAI's own products. Last week, OpenAI released the new model ChatGPT-01, which is capable of performing certain tasks similar to human reasoning. Microsoft stated that it plans to integrate this technology into its own products at some point in the future.

Microsoft mentioned that there is a strong demand for early versions of Copilot, and customers have praised some of its features, particularly its ability to assist with meetings and document summaries. Currently, the cost of Copilot is $30 per user per month, and Microsoft expects it to become a significant new source of revenue in the future.

However, many features are still being improved and the performance of generating new content is unstable, especially when it comes to spreadsheets or tasks that require understanding of context. In recent months, investors have shown signs of impatience with technology companies' efforts to profit from large-scale investments in AI.

The new AI tool can help users create Excel charts and analyze priority processed emails.

Microsoft has also launched a new feature called Pages for Copilot, its chat application, which provides colleagues with a collaborative space using the data they create as well as AI-generated content. Pages stores AI-generated materials in one place and allows employees to edit and share them. This new feature was launched on Monday and will be widely available later this month. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said, "You can brainstorm with AI and collaborate with others."

Microsoft has also widely launched its Copilot tool for the Excel spreadsheet application, which helps users create charts and pivot tables. Excel Copilot can also handle text data and perform prediction and risk analysis using the Python programming language. The Python feature is currently in preview and can be accessed through regular language instead of programming code.

In addition, Microsoft has announced AI new features for Word, Teams, and PowerPoint. The "Prioritize My Inbox" option launched in Outlook analyzes emails based on user responses and the objects they report on in the company to help clean up the inbox. The program will be available for preview later this year and will summarize emails and explain why these messages should be prioritized.

Netizens' feedback: It can improve efficiency and it would be better if it's cheaper.

Most netizens are excited and looking forward to Microsoft's latest update, believing that it can greatly improve work efficiency.

Some netizens commented:

The true value of AI lies in its integration with your data and workflows. Therefore, the next stage of Microsoft 365 Copilot will enhance this collaborative effect. It aims to make AI work effectively, efficiently, and seamlessly for you.

Another netizen said:

This is not just about the model itself, but also about its integration with your team's daily tasks and tools.

Some netizens said:

The user interface is crucial. Companies that don't understand this point will fail, while those that understand this principle will succeed.

In response to Microsoft CEO Nadella's post, most netizens expressed approval of Microsoft's release of the new Copilot feature, but some people suggested that Microsoft should consider lowering the price.

Editor/Lambor