Microsoft is excited "rain of bricks and stones" When forcing users to use features, not everyone needs them

The automatic integration of the Copilot AI assistant into the Microsoft 365 service package in some countries has caused the technology giant to come under strong criticism, as users are forced to pay extra for a feature that is not available to everyone. also need.

Copilot integration: Price hike and controversy​

Microsoft is testing the integration of Copilot, an AI assistant based on OpenAI technology, into Microsoft 365 services in several countries, including Australia and Southeast Asian countries. This means users can experience AI features like document generation, meeting summaries, or slide design in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, but at a higher subscription price.

Some users are unhappy because they don’t want to use Copilot but still have to pay extra. Alistair Fleming, a user in Australia, shared that after the update, the Copilot logo appeared continuously every time he wrote a video script on Word, causing discomfort. His monthly subscription price also increased from 11 to 16 Australian dollars.

On social networks, many people compare Copilot to Clippy, Microsoft’s virtual assistant in the 1990s, which was ridiculed for its ineffectiveness. Microsoft declined to comment on this strategy and has not announced plans to expand Copilot integration to more markets.

The driving force behind Microsoft’s AI strategy​

Microsoft has invested nearly $14 billion in OpenAI, becoming the largest investor in the company behind ChatGPT. CEO Satya Nadella sees Copilot as an important part of the strategy to expand the software business, targeting both individual and business customers.

Since early 2023, Microsoft has integrated AI into Bing in the form of chatbots and then introduced Copilot as a bigger step forward. The paid version of Copilot, launching in the US in January 2024, costs $20/month, significantly higher than the regular personal Microsoft 365 plan ($7/month).

However, Copilot has difficulty competing with ChatGPT. According to Sensor Tower, from May 2023 to mid-December 2024, Copilot was downloaded 37 million times, while ChatGPT reached 443 million downloads. Microsoft is focusing on promoting Copilot to businesses, its largest customer group, but still faces skepticism about its usefulness, accuracy and data security.

Competitive challenges and future prospects

In the context of fierce competition, Microsoft has not announced sales of Copilot integration packages. However, nearly 70% of Fortune 500 businesses already use AI, and Microsoft’s annual AI revenue is expected to exceed $10 billion, including cloud computing services.

Competitors such as Salesforce also develop AI-integrated products, creating great pressure on Microsoft. Company insiders say Jared Spataro, Director of Marketing AI for work at Microsoft, sees ChatGPT Enterprise as Copilot’s biggest competitor.

Copilot is just the beginning of Microsoft’s AI strategy. The company is aiming to develop agents – tools that automate complex tasks such as serving customers or booking travel tickets. According to WSJ, the success of these agents will depend on the level of user satisfaction with Copilot.

However, at the present time, the integration of Copilot into Microsoft 365 is causing many mixed reactions. Alistair Fleming, after failing to remove Copilot from the software many times, decided to cancel his Microsoft 365 subscription and switch to using Google Docs.