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Microsoft to showcase its cutting-edge AI technology in Word, PowerPoint

News Desk

Feb 12

Microsoft is poised to showcase its new artificial intelligence (AI) technology, which bears resemblance to OpenAI’s ChatGPT, and its transformative impact on its Office productivity suite.

Following the demonstration of its Prometheus Model in the latest Bing search engine, Microsoft is now set to reveal its plans to integrate OpenAI’s language AI technology and Prometheus Model into its core productivity apps such as Word, PowerPoint, and Outlook.

Sources with knowledge of Microsoft’s initiatives revealed that the company is making preparations to showcase its productivity vision, which involves the integration of OpenAI’s AI technology, in the upcoming weeks. Microsoft is reportedly aiming for an official announcement in March, highlighting the company’s drive to revolutionize its search and productivity offerings through its investments in OpenAI.

Earlier reports by The Information indicated that GPT models have undergone trials in Outlook to enhance search results, along with features for recommending email replies and Word document integration to enhance writing capabilities. A new generative AI experience was recently introduced in Microsoft Viva Sales, leveraging the Azure OpenAI Service and GPT to create sales emails, similar to some of the features being tested in Outlook.

As Microsoft’s new Prometheus Model, based on OpenAI’s next-generation technology, has already revolutionized Bing web searches, the integration of this functionality into Microsoft Office apps and Teams will serve as a testament to the company’s confidence in its AI capabilities. Currently, the Prometheus Model can be utilized within Office web apps through the Bing sidebar integration in Microsoft Edge browser.

This sidebar features a compose tab that offers a glimpse into Microsoft’s ongoing testing work for Word and Outlook. Additionally, sources indicate that the company is exploring ways to generate graphs and graphics for PowerPoint. Bing already has the ability to create tables and charts for basic data, but incorporating those into visually appealing graphics for presentations or Excel use would be a natural progression.

Microsoft is proceeding with haste in its integration efforts, largely due to the threat posed by Google. Sources informed The Verge that Microsoft had originally intended to launch its Bing AI in late February, but expedited the release in response to Google’s imminent announcements. As a result, Google unveiled its ChatGPT rival, Bard, a day ahead of Microsoft’s event.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella is determined to establish the company as a leader in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), and counteract any competition from rival Google. To demonstrate his commitment, Nadella arrived early to the Bing AI event on Tuesday morning, despite the event being scheduled to start at 10 AM PT. He was so eager to commence early that he requested to start the event 20 minutes ahead of schedule, resulting in event organizers scrambling to accommodate the change and the event beginning five minutes ahead of schedule, with Nadella taking the stage two minutes before the original 10 AM PT start time.

Internally, several Microsoft executives are confident that the company is far ahead of Google in terms of Bing AI and its integration into productivity apps. However, they are also cautious, cautioning employees to be vigilant against rivals who may attempt to disrupt Microsoft’s productivity offerings in the same manner as Microsoft is targeting Google’s search business.

Nadella’s push for AI integration across Microsoft’s products is driven by the overwhelming consumer response to OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Analysts at UBS estimate that ChatGPT achieved 100 million monthly active users after just two months. Within 48 hours, over 1 million people signed up for the Bing waitlist, and as of Thursday, Bing was the third most popular app in the US App Store.

According to The Verge, Microsoft intends to capitalize on the opportunities presented by artificial intelligence (AI) in 2023 and unlock the full potential of its Prometheus Model, including features that have yet to be publicly disclosed. The tech industry can expect AI to be a prominent topic of discussion throughout the rest of the year, as Microsoft and Google compete for supremacy in the search and AI space.

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