Unlock the Future: Microsoft Ignite 2023 Reveals Exciting New Developments!
Microsoft Ignite 2023, the annual conference for developers and IT professionals, commenced with a keynote session on November 15. During this two-day event, Microsoft offers sessions for its developer community to explore the latest technology being developed by the company. This year, the conference features nearly 600 sessions that can be attended either in person in Seattle or online for registered users. Microsoft also made significant announcements, such as its plans to produce AI chips, the rebranding of Bing Chat to Copilot, and new features for its Microsoft 365 suite of Copilots. Let’s delve into the ten most noteworthy announcements from the event.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella recently shared a post on X (formerly Twitter) that also highlighted the highlights of the event. Posting a short video, he said: “Copilot is a new interface to both the world’s knowledge and your organization’s knowledge, but more importantly, it’s your agent to help you act on that knowledge. Here are the highlights from my #MSIgnite keynote today.
10 key announcements at Microsoft Ignite 2023
1. Bing Chat is renamed Copilot: Less than a year after launching its own ChatGPT-like chatbot and integrating it with the Bing search engine (and later in Microsoft Edge and Windows 11), the company is now rebranding the product. It will henceforth be known simply as Copilot. This move sees Microsoft abandon the search engine competition with Google and instead focus on the chatbot competition, competing directly with OpenAI. This also brings consistency to the naming logic of all the company’s AI products, and set Bing Chat apart from the company’s other Copilot offerings.
2. Microsoft builds custom AI chips: Microsoft has developed its own custom AI chip, Azure Maia, and an Arm-based CPU called Azure Cobalt. Intended for use in Microsoft’s Azure data centers, these chips are intended to provide an alternative to Nvidia’s H100 GPUs, which have seen increased demand for training large language models and creative imaging tools. The move is part of Microsoft’s strategy to reduce reliance on external hardware vendors and improve its capabilities in artificial intelligence in preparation for future advancements in the industry. The Azure Maia AI chip and Azure Cobalt processor are scheduled to be introduced in 2024.
3. Copilot Studio: After OpenAI announced GPT Builder, which allows others to build custom GPT tools called GPTs, now Microsoft is following suit. Microsoft introduced Copilot Studio, a code-free platform that allows companies to create custom copilots or integrate ChatGPT AI chatbots. This new tool is an extension of Microsoft 365 Copilot, a recently launched paid service. Copilot Studio allows businesses to customize Microsoft 365 Copilot.
4. Copilots get their first update: Microsoft has announced updates to the Copilot offerings that come with its Microsoft 365 subscription. The changes add new features to Copilot’s role in Teams, PowerPoint and Outlook. In particular, users can now provide instructions for customizing the design and tone to their own preferences.
5. 3D VR Meetings in Microsoft Teams: Microsoft Teams is getting a cool new feature. Users will soon be able to hold 3D VR meetings for an office atmosphere. The feature comes complete with customizable avatars, Meeting Spaces design, spatial audio, and audio zones that provide the user with a realistic experience of participating in a physical meeting.
6. Microsoft Planner: Microsoft combines its task management and planning tools, including Microsoft To Do, Microsoft Planner and Microsoft Project for the web, into a unified experience called Microsoft Planner. This integration will roll out in Microsoft Teams’ Planner app in early 2024, with the online experience following later this year. As part of this change, the current Tasks by Planner and To Do apps in Microsoft Teams will be renamed to just Planner.
7. Windows AI Studio: Microsoft introduced Windows AI Studio, a central hub for developers to access and customize AI models. This platform provides developers with tools and templates from Azure AI Studio and integrates services such as Hugging Face. Windows AI Studio provides a guided workspace setup, including a model configuration interface and demonstrations that facilitate fine-tuning of various small language models.
8. Decorate your background in MS Teams: Microsoft Teams Premium will introduce the “decorate your background” feature in early 2024. It utilizes generative AI effects to enhance video call backgrounds. Unlike virtual backgrounds, this feature works as an AR filter in a real room. It can clean and replace clutter and add accessories, decorative elements and party themes, giving a polished and personalized look to the background during video calls.
9. Loop, a productivity app: Loop is Microsoft’s collaboration platform that facilitates collaboration with flexible workspaces and pages. The interface is reminiscent of Notion, a similar app that Microsoft apparently competes with.
10. Security Copilot: Microsoft combines its Sentinel security analytics and Microsoft Defender XDR platforms into a unified security operations platform. This integration includes placing the Security Copilot chatbot at the heart of the system, allowing users to effectively manage various security functions. It was first introduced in March, but is now being rolled out more widely.
