Microsoft is integrating Anthropic's AI technology into its Copilot service, launching a new tool called Copilot Cowork. This tool, based on Anthropic's Claude Cowork, is designed to handle complex tasks like creating apps and organizing data with minimal human oversight.
Microsoft emphasizes its cloud-based security and data controls as a key advantage to attract enterprise customers wary of AI risks. The launch follows sector-wide stock selloffs triggered by Anthropic's recent AI advancements, which raised concerns about disruption to traditional software companies.
The Copilot Cowork tool is in testing, will be available for early access soon, and will be partially included in existing enterprise subscriptions. This move also deepens Microsoft's partnership with Anthropic, diversifying its AI model dependencies beyond OpenAI.
Main topics: Microsoft's new AI tool (Copilot Cowork), partnership with Anthropic, emphasis on enterprise security, market reaction to AI agents, and pricing/availability details.
Microsoft is adding Anthropic's AI technology to its Copilot service to tap growing demand for autonomous agents, weeks after the startup's new tools sparked a selloff in software stocks.
The company on Monday unveiled Copilot Cowork, a tool based on Anthropic's viral Claude Cowork offering, which has captivated Silicon Valley with âits ability to â handle â complex tasks such as creating apps, building spreadsheets and organizing large volumes of data with limited human oversight.
Microsoft is betting that its long-standing ties with enterprise customers and its focus on security and data controls will help it win business from companies interested in AI agents but wary of deploying them without safeguards.
"We work only in a cloud environment â and we âwork only on behalf of the user. So you âknow exactly âwhat information it (Copilot Cowork) has access to," Jared â Spataro, who leads Microsoft's AI-at-Work efforts, told Reuters.
Cloud Cowork only âworks locally on the device and most companies feel "very âuncomfortable" with that, he said. "We're the opposite."
The launch comes weeks after Anthropic introduced new tools for Claude that intensified investor concerns about the threat AI agents could pose to traditional software companies, triggering to a selloff in the sector. Microsoft's own shares fell nearly 9% in February.
Copilot âCowork tool is currently in testing and will be available to early-access users later this month, Microsoft said.
The company did not disclose pricing, but said â some usage would be included in its $30-per-user, per-month M365 Copilot offering for enterprises, with additional usage available for purchase.
Microsoft also said it is making Anthropic's latest Claude Sonnet models available to M365 Copilot users. The service had previously relied only on OpenAI's GPT models.
The move deepens Microsoft's ties with Anthropic at a time when investors have questioned its dependence on OpenAI, which accounts for nearly 45% of Microsoft's cloud business contract backlog.
The company on Monday unveiled Copilot Cowork, a tool based on Anthropic's viral Claude Cowork offering, which has captivated Silicon Valley with âits ability to â handle â complex tasks such as creating apps, building spreadsheets and organizing large volumes of data with limited human oversight.
Microsoft is betting that its long-standing ties with enterprise customers and its focus on security and data controls will help it win business from companies interested in AI agents but wary of deploying them without safeguards.
"We work only in a cloud environment â and we âwork only on behalf of the user. So you âknow exactly âwhat information it (Copilot Cowork) has access to," Jared â Spataro, who leads Microsoft's AI-at-Work efforts, told Reuters.
Cloud Cowork only âworks locally on the device and most companies feel "very âuncomfortable" with that, he said. "We're the opposite."
The launch comes weeks after Anthropic introduced new tools for Claude that intensified investor concerns about the threat AI agents could pose to traditional software companies, triggering to a selloff in the sector. Microsoft's own shares fell nearly 9% in February.
Copilot âCowork tool is currently in testing and will be available to early-access users later this month, Microsoft said.
The company did not disclose pricing, but said â some usage would be included in its $30-per-user, per-month M365 Copilot offering for enterprises, with additional usage available for purchase.
Microsoft also said it is making Anthropic's latest Claude Sonnet models available to M365 Copilot users. The service had previously relied only on OpenAI's GPT models.
The move deepens Microsoft's ties with Anthropic at a time when investors have questioned its dependence on OpenAI, which accounts for nearly 45% of Microsoft's cloud business contract backlog.
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