Microsoft Corp. has released research showing how artificial intelligence (AI) will change work skills even as it will expand access to Microsoft 365 Copilot.

The Microsoft 365 Copilot gives new generative AI capabilities to apps such as Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook and Microsoft Teams, a news release said.

“Microsoft is introducing the Microsoft 365 Copilot Early Access Program with an initial wave of 600 enterprise customers worldwide in an invitation-only paid preview program,” the release said. 

New data and insights into how AI will “create a whole new way of working” is available in the 2023 Work Trend Index report “Will AI Fix Work?”

“The platform shift to AI is underway and will completely transform the way people work,” the report said. “To date AI has mostly been on autopilot. Now, next-generation copilots will work alongside people, freeing us from digital debt and fueling innovation. Organizations that embrace AI will unleash creativity and unlock productivity for everyone, ushering in a new wave of productivity growth and value creation.”

Three findings from the report are that businesses are “carrying digital debt” in that “the volume of data, e-mails and chats has outpaced our ability to process it all,” there’s a new AI-employee alliance in that managers want “to empower employees with AI, not replace” them, and employees need “AI aptitude.”

According to TechTarget, AI uses machines and computers to simulate human intelligence processes.

“AI requires a foundation of specialized hardware and software for writing and training machine learning algorithms,” TechTarget said. “It has been effectively used in business to automate tasks done by humans, including customer service work, lead generation, fraud detection and quality control. In a number of areas, AI can perform tasks much better than humans.”

Satya Nadella, Microsoft chairman and CEO, said in the release the “new generation of AI will remove the drudgery of work.”

“There’s an enormous opportunity for AI-powered tools to help alleviate digital debt, build AI aptitude and empower employees,” Nadella said.