Powered by OpenAI’s latest models, Microsoft’s Copilot assistant is becoming much more versatile, aiming to serve as an "encouraging" digital coworker.
Seventeen years after retiring the overly eager office assistant Clippy, Microsoft seems to have revived the idea of a friendly and optimistic AI helper. The company is revamping Copilot, its text-based AI tool integrated with Windows and other software, by adding vision, voice, and the capability to tackle more complex tasks—all with a more “encouraging” personality.
Hyper Man
Copilot AI is getting voice and vision capabilities along with a new “Hype Man” persona as part of some significant Microsoft updates. These improvements were motivated by a desire to make Copilot more engaged, helpful and human — as it contributes.
Now, users can interact with Copilot through voice and speak in English using several humanlike voices including mixing turn-taking sentences by layering. This chartable knack is one of the numerous ways [Microsoft] works to try to build a better, flowing interaction with AI. CMLA provides an all-new vision modality which the new Copilot Vision rollout makes use of: it allows AIs to see on screen content, enabling contextual responses based off what a user points at or selects (e.g., recognizing fashion trends types or making qualitative judgments about web pages).
“We really are at this amazing kind of transition point,” says Mustafa Suleyman, CEO of Microsoft AI. “AI companions now see what we see, hear what we hear, and speak in the same language we use to communicate.”
Microsoft’s
While Copilot has received mixed feedback, with some users criticizing it for being slow or vague, Microsoft is betting on its potential to become a core feature of Windows, Office, and beyond. By integrating OpenAI’s algorithms into software used by millions, Microsoft is leading the charge in testing AI’s ability to enhance productivity in the workplace. Meanwhile, Google, a major competitor, is also incorporating AI into its office apps, like Gmail and Google Docs.
