(Credit: Microsoft)
As PCMag's long-tenured Windows expert, I've been watching Microsoft for much of its 50-year history, and I'm noticing a distinct shift in the tech giant's focus and update strategy for core products. And now, as I attend Microsoft's 50th Anniversary Event in Redmond, WA, this change is even more evident.
Historically, Microsoft has released a major new Windows version every two or three years, such as Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows XP (with some less-important versions in between), and an updated version of Office every three years or so, such as Office 2007, Office 2010, Office 2013, and so on.
But that's all changing with the arrival of AI, and Copilot, in particular. Now, Microsoft is readjusting its efforts and moving much faster with updates. In other words, it's functioning like a start-up.
Let me first acknowledge the obvious way that Microsoft is not like a start-up: It’s got a nearly three-trillion-dollar market capitalization. However, I believe that it’s exhibiting the two major characteristics of start-ups that have nothing to do with funding—a focus on a single technology and rapid iteration.
It's All About Copilot
If you follow Microsoft at all, you know that Copilot is now its main focus. The company has even gone as far as to change the name of its Microsoft 365 productivity suite to Microsoft 365 Copilot. Nay, the company now uses the Copilot+ banner to classify newer PCs with neural processing units (NPUs). The flagship Windows operating system now comes with Copilot, and the AI tool is also prevalent across Microsoft's Azure cloud service, developer tools, and enterprise business software. You can’t look anywhere in Microsoft’s portfolio without seeing the word Copilot.
CEO Satya Nadella wasn’t just blowing smoke when he proclaimed that “Microsoft is now the Copilot company” at its 2023 Ignite conference. Not many years ago, Microsoft had a reputation among tech workers as being a “country club.” That’s no longer the case, with the company implementing more stringent review policies and layoffs as of late. Microsoft’s new CEO of AI, Mustafa Suleyman, might be a major force behind this faster pace of innovation and accountability. He founded the DeepMind AI outfit that Google later acquired. And Copilot itself speeds the development process significantly, saving coders from the minutiae of code perfection.
Once the Copilot fever took hold, Microsoft proceeded to release updates at a head-spinning pace. The current version of Copilot bears little (if any) resemblance to the original Bing Chat AI iteration or even to the first version of the standalone Copilot app. It has benefited from numerous feature additions, tweaks, and updates over its development.
A recent Copilot blog post listed no fewer than 11 updates within the space of a few months, ranging from a Copilot macOS app to Copilot Voice and Think Deeper being generally available to free users. And just in Microsoft 365 there have been at least 16 updates in the past year (here are a few). Several features are currently in beta, including the ability to ”see” what’s on your screen and comment on it intelligently. Even today, on the day of the company’s 50th anniversary, it announced yet more Copilot features.
Of course, putting all your eggs in one basket can be risky. Changing well-established brands like Microsoft Office could backfire, and there’s plenty of fear and loathing in the world for AI. Microsoft probably hopes that adding AI tools to its productivity software can help it regain some market share from Google Docs.
How Can Microsoft Stay Relevant?
No, Microsoft is not actually a start-up. Unlike a real start-up, the company is unlikely to go belly-up if its strategy fails. But it’s impressive that a juggernaut corporation that has been around for half a century can be this nimble. If the company wants to survive another 50 years, it must continue to embrace this quality. Stay tuned for additional Copilot coverage from Microsoft's 50th Anniversary Event.