Microsoft has unveiled its AI-powered Copilot for Finance as part of its ongoing efforts to integrate AI capabilities across its software offerings. The new service, currently in public preview, aims to simplify data sorting and error detection in financial reports for workers.
Copilot for Finance provides real-time insights into corporate finance data, reducing the need for manual data entry and search in Excel spreadsheets. The AI service can also streamline audits, identify data variances, and assist users in generating PowerPoint presentations and emails using natural language prompts.
Microsoft is committed to incorporating Copilot across its productivity platforms, including Microsoft 365, as it competes with rivals such as Google and Salesforce. These companies, along with other smaller firms, are also developing generative AI services to demonstrate their innovation in this emerging technology trend.
While Microsoft has not disclosed the pricing for Copilot for Finance, the service includes Copilot for Microsoft 365, which typically costs $30 per user per month. The company is actively investing in generative AI technologies, having already invested billions of dollars in OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT. Microsoft recently announced a partnership with Mistral, a competitor of OpenAI, to offer its AI models through the Azure cloud platform.
The integration of generative AI tools into enterprise-friendly services is part of Microsoft’s and its competitors’ strategy to monetize their investments in AI technologies. In its latest earnings report, Microsoft revealed that AI services contributed 6 percentage points of growth to Azure revenue. The company’s shares have seen a 63% increase over the past year.
Overall, Microsoft’s introduction of Copilot for Finance demonstrates its commitment to leveraging AI capabilities to enhance productivity and efficiency in the finance sector.
