(Credit: Zain bin Awais/PCMag composite; Microsoft; J studio/via Getty Images)
When I was growing up, Microsoft Word was the gold standard of "computer processing" and the main alternative to paper and pencil. But that is no longer the case. As Microsoft hits its 50th anniversary, Word, PowerPoint, and Excel are irrelevant to many young people.
"We are more accustomed to using Google Docs...because our teachers often required us to collaborate on projects in middle school and high school," one Gen Z'er says. "Google Docs provided a convenient way to share our work with group members and work on the same document."
One professor at Iowa State University says he tried to get his students to use Word and required it in the syllabus. "Instead, they persist in using Google Docs." Students found Microsoft's products to be a "culture shock" and had trouble converting files between office suites.
Microsoft offers a free version of Office, but that only includes 5GB of cloud storage. Google offers 15GB of free storage for each account, and students are using either personal accounts or paid Workspace accounts, depending on the institution.
The main time a young person encounters Microsoft is when they are forced to use it, usually upon entering the workforce on company-issued devices. Even then, they resist.
"Since most students I know have used Google Docs since elementary school, are you still using it at work even though it's more 'professional' to use Word?" asks one young Redditor. "Do you think this will be a generational phenomenon where most Gen Z workers will opt out of using Word for convenience's sake?"
Even many adults who grew up on Office software have switched to Google Workspace, letting their Microsoft icons collect dust in the toolbar (like now-dead Skype). In fairness, there are still many people who prefer Word to Docs or Excel to Sheets—it largely depends on the industry—but it's clear Microsoft has a Gen Z problem.
And how do you solve problems in 2025? Throw AI at it. Enter Copilot.
Deus Ex Copilot
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella was widely praised for his savvy OpenAI investment, and he indeed moved quickly to make good on it. It felt like a jolt of energy he knew Microsoft needed.
Microsoft was the first major search engine provider to add AI-powered responses with Bing Chat. That got rebranded as Copilot and was incorporated into Windows and its associated products as Microsoft shifted to become "the Copilot company."
Copilot adds a conversational component to Excel, for example, while a Copilot key on supported PCs brings up a chat interface that can write custom formulas for you. In Microsoft-owned GitHub, Copilot helps developers code. The GitHub integration is "by far the most widely adopted AI-powered developer," according to Nadella, and the reason for 40% of GitHub's revenue growth in 2024. "Copilot for Microsoft 365 is becoming a daily habit for knowledge workers," he said in a July earnings call.
The problem is Google is doing the same thing by embedding Gemini AI into an ecosystem that has already locked in younger users.
“Since we already use Google for our email, document management, presentations, and other aspects of our work, it was a no-brainer to utilize Gemini because it most easily integrates with these existing environments and workflows,” says Boise State University's Leif Nelson, Executive Director of Learning Technology Solutions and Research Computing.
What Happens When Gen Z Is the CEO?
Still, Microsoft's businesses are more diverse than people may realize. Beyond Microsoft 365, it also has Azure cloud computing, LinkedIn, Xbox, its Surface devices, and even quantum computing. There's time to figure this out.
But on Microsoft's 50th anniversary, I'm left wondering if the flagship products I grew up with are dying a slow death. When Gen Z is in charge of major corporations, will they keep a 365 subscription on the books or switch to an enterprise version of Google Workspace? What about when Gen Z's kids are the CEOs? What sort of office suites will they use (assuming AI isn't doing everything for us by then).
It's impossible to predict; the younger generation's digital habits change rapidly. Case in point: Many don't even use Google for internet searches. They prefer Instagram, TikTok, or Reddit, Forbes reports. Keeping them happy is no easy task, but Microsoft needs to figure it out.