Microsoft adds ChatGPT technology to Word, Excel, office software

Microsoft on Thursday trumpeted its latest plans to put artificial intelligence into the hands of more users, answering a spate of unveilings this week by its rival Google with upgrades to its own widely used office software. The technology company previewed a new AI “copilot” for Microsoft 365, its product suite that includes Word documents, Excel spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations and Outlook emails. The Redmond, Washington-based company, outpacing peers through investments in ChatGPT’s creator OpenAI, also showcased a new “business chat” experience that can pull data and perform tasks across applications on a user’s written command. This week’s drumbeat of news including new funding for AI startup Adept reflects how companies large and small are locked in a fierce competition to deploy software that could reshape how people work. In one of the company’s biggest updates on Thursday, Microsoft said AI can open up the computational wizardry of its Excel spreadsheet software — long the domain of trained analysts — to any person able to describe a calculation they would like in plain text.