Microsoft executives presented a comprehensive vision for leveraging agentic technology at the inaugural AI Agent & Copilot Summit. The event focused on the evolving landscape of artificial intelligence and detailed opportunities for businesses to transform operations, including a future where autonomous agents play a central role.
Key discussions centered on how companies should adapt to this new, agent-driven world, from rethinking employee performance to guiding boards of directors. A major theme was the integration of AI agents into core Microsoft systems, along with the tools and platforms that will allow for creating, managing, and deploying these agents.
Ray Smith, Microsoft Vice President of AI Agents, presented a ‘future of work’ scenario. In this future, employees will be evaluated, at least in part, based on their “agent acumen.”
“The future of work may not necessarily be what are Ray’s skills, but what agents can Ray build, manage, deploy, and that’s going to be a representation of my value that I can bring to a company, or what I could bring to the market,” Smith explained.
Transformation Opportunities
Smith identified three key areas where agentic AI will drive transformative change. These include boosting employee productivity, improving processes to cut costs and boost revenue, and generating completely new products and experiences.
Smith emphasized that successful transformation requires a shift away from lengthy transformation programs. Instead, businesses must adopt a fast-paced “build, test, and iterate” approach to keep pace with the rapid advancement of AI. He also defined four levels of agentic AI transformation:
- Human-Focused: AI augments every worker, aiding each person by understanding their jobs.
- Augmentation: AI assists workers in specific tasks.
- Agents First: Humans manage a pool of agents to oversee tasks and handle exceptions.
- Autonomous Agents: Agents complete basic policy checks and reasoning, thus creating “a big ROI unlock.”
At levels 3 and 4, human contributions will be defined by their skills in managing agents. “Everyone in this room will be an agent builder,” Smith said.
Companies looking to implement autonomous agents will begin with commonplace processes like IT and HR help desks. Their next step will likely be business development, supply chain cost reduction, and other key business functions. Customers must consider agents like the new application type – reasoning tools to unlock significant transformation, while following human guardrails and asking for assistance when orchestrating them.
AI Functionality and Tech Stacks
Microsoft outlined the technology stack and platforms to enable customers to fully implement autonomous agents.
Microsoft is developing agent platforms that include the following:
- M365 Copilot: a no-code tool for “productivity AI.”
- Copilot Studio: a tool that falls between no-code and pro code for “process AI.”
- Azure AI Foundry and Github: pro-code AI platforms for developers.
Smith described these platforms as a “transformation stack with tooling aligned to skills,” noting that customers can adopt layers individually or use them “better together.”
Cecilia Flombaum, Office of the CTO – Business & Industry Copilots, presented an additional element of the Microsoft technology stack and its AI positioning. Flombaum explored a new application and platform stack that brings together people, copilots, and agents. User interfaces are evolving into copilots, workflows are transforming into agents, and data is evolving into knowledge. She also highlighted Dynamics 365 for managing business data and processes, Microsoft 365 for productivity and collaboration, and Power Platform for low-code solutions.
Setting AI Priorities and Organizational Factors
The AI Agent & Copilot Summit also covered organizational considerations for AI success. Kirstie Tiernan, a BDO board of directors member, shared insights on setting AI priorities, from boardrooms to everyday employees. Tiernan also discussed how AI is raising the bar for both employee and employer competitive performance.
Tiernan cited the fact that employees are using AI tools like ChatGPT, regardless of company policies. She observed that some employees are using personal laptops in the workplace to avoid corporate restrictions on using ChatGPT.
She noted that current and future employees will be far less likely, if not entirely unwilling, to interview with employers that restrict the use of AI tools. Tiernan shared data showing that usage of AI programs spans all age groups, not just younger workers. She also shared data showing that usage of non-corporate-provisioned AI tools spans all age groups.
Tiernan further emphasized the importance of developing prompting skills. “If you’re going to be around for the next five years or so, you’d better be developing prompting skills,” she said. A key factor is relying on “power users” to implement organizational change successfully. Lastly, Tiernan gave insight into how boards evaluate AI projects, which includes building a foundation of education and awareness as well as establishing a cross-functional AI team. Other factors are: strategic considerations (opportunity/risk assessment, AI policies, governance). When it comes to implementation, boards consider implementation oversight, ethical AI advocacy, and conduct resource assessment of how projects are being carried out.
