Microsoft Announces AI-Powered Copilot Feature, Executives Discuss Responsible AI

Microsoft has announced the release date for its AI-powered Copilot feature, which can generate blog posts, images, and emails based on user prompts. The company's executives have spoken about the danger of over-reliance on generative software, but they insist that Copilot is a tool to be used, not a replacement for human creativity and judgment.

In a recent "Responsible AI" panel, Microsoft executives attempted to make a clear statement: Everything is fine. Responsible AI is still a thing at Microsoft. And Copilot isn't going to take your job.

Sarah Bird, who leads responsible AI for foundational AI technologies at Microsoft, said that the product name "Copilot" is intentional. "It's really great at working with you," she said. "It's definitely not great at replacing you."

Bird referenced a demonstration from the launch event that showed Copilot drafting an email on a user's behalf. "We want to ensure that people are actually checking that the content of those emails is what they want to say," Bird said. Panelists mentioned that Bing chat includes citations, which human users can then go back and verify.

"These types of user experience help reduce over-reliance on the system," Bird said. "They're using it as a tool, but they're not relying on it to do everything for them."

Divya Kumar, Microsoft's GM of search and AI marketing, further assured the audience, "We want to give people the ability to verify content, just like if you were doing any research. The human factor is going to be so important."

Panelists acknowledged that Copilot (at least, at this stage) will be vulnerable to misinformation and disinformation — including that which other generative AI tools might create. Microsoft has prioritized incorporating tools like citations and Content Credentials (which adds a digital watermark to AI-generated images in Bing) to ensure that people see Copilot's generations as starting points rather than as replacements for their own work.

Panelists urged the audience not to fear the impact that generative tools might have. "My team and I are taking this really seriously," said Chitra Gopalakrishnan, Microsoft's partner director of compliance. "From development to deployment, all of these features go through rigorous ethical analysis, impact analysis, as well as risk mitigation."

The panelists did, however, acknowledge later on that generative tools might drastically change the landscape of viable careers.

"When you have a powerful tool to partner with, what you need to do is different," Bird said. "We know some of the jobs are going to change."

Overall, the message from Microsoft is that Copilot is a powerful tool that can be used to enhance human creativity and productivity, but it is important to use it responsibly and to be aware of its limitations.