Microsoft teases major announcement on 'the next phase' of its flagship AI feature
Microsoft has scheduled its next major announcement on its Copilot AI features for September 16
Microsoft will announce the "next phase of Copilot innovation" in an upcoming event, scheduled for September 16. The event, which starts at 4pm in the UK, will be available to stream for free on LinkedIn.
First introduced last year, Microsoft Copilot is an Artificial Intelligence (AI) assistant that promises to suggest responses to emails, put together PowerPoint presentations, work-out Excel formulae for you, summarise lengthy documents into easy-to-digest bullet points, and more.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Corporate Vice President of AI At Work Jared Spataro will host the event, which will be streamed on LinkedIn... which is owned by Microsoft
MICROSOFT PRESS OFFICE
It can also dream up recipes and itineraries, write interview questions and cover letters, find flights and recommend accommodation, and much more.
Of course, this is all possible with the standalone ChatGPT or Google Gemini — what separates Copilot is the deep ties into the Windows operating system, enabling the AI to change your Windows theme from light to dark mode, turn on "Do Not Disturb", or add a new Bluetooth device.
Copilot is baked into Windows 11 by default and can be summoned within any part of the operating system by pressing the Windows + C keys on your keyboard.
Microsoft has mandated a dedicated Copilot-branded key on all new Windows 11 laptops and desktop PCs launched this year — the first shake-up to the layout of Windows keyboards in almost three decades. The Redmond-based company, alongside Samsung, Lenovo and mnay others, released the first models with this new key dedicated to AI earlier this summer, dubbed Copilot+ PCs.
Copilot is based on the latest advancements in Artificial Intelligence (AI) from the team at OpenAI, the non-profit initially funded by donations from Elon Musk but now supported to the tune of $10 billion by Microsoft.
The incoming event, dubbed Microsoft 365 Copilot: Wave 2, is widely-tipped to showcase new integrations and features for Copilot users within Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and other core productivity apps.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Corporate Vice President of AI At Work Jared Spataro will host the event, which will be available to stream on LinkedIn. This choice of platform is tipped to underscore Copilot's focus on professional and business applications.
Whispers suggest the September event will see Microsoft rebrand its Copilot services. Sources suggest that "Copilot in Word" will become "Microsoft 365 Copilot in Word", whilst "Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365" will be renamed "Microsoft 365 Copilot". Because those names are ...simpler?
Whatever the reason behind the complicated new naming convention, Microsoft is also highy-likely to introduce new features for Microsoft 365 Copilot. These additions aim to entice more businesses to adopt the service, which currently costs £30 per user per month.
Copilot Pro, the consumer-focused subscription priced at £19 monthly, may also see enhancements. This service, which provides AI features in Word and other Office applications, has seen limited updates since its launch earlier this year.
Notably, Microsoft removed the GPT Builder feature from Copilot Pro in June, indicating ongoing refinements to the service's offerings.
Copilot, launched in February 2023, has become Microsoft's primary AI chatbot, replacing the discontinued Cortana and Bing Chat. It utilises the Microsoft Prometheus model, built on OpenAI's GPT-4 technology. The AI assistant has been integrated into various Microsoft products, including Bing, Edge, and Windows 11.
Microsoft's Copilot Pro subscription unlocks its clever AI in almost every part of the Windows and Microsoft Office 365 experience, from Word to Outlook and Excel to image-creation — everything is powered by the latest LLM technology from OpenAI MICROSOFT PRESS OFFICE The launch of ChatGPT in November 2022 sparked a race in AI development. Microsoft responded by announcing a $10 billion investment in OpenAI in January 2023. This move prompted Google to unveil Bard (now Gemini) in February, just before Microsoft's Copilot announcement.
Industry analysts viewed Google's action as an attempt to avoid falling behind in the AI race.
In the coming months, millions of iPhone owners will begin to get to grips with Apple's response to the push towards AI with Apple Intelligence too. Unfortunately, millions more iPhone users will miss out on this feature.