Microsoft Unveils AI Agents to Automate Business Processes
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Microsoft has announced that, starting in November 2024, businesses will have the opportunity to create and manage autonomous artificial intelligence agents designed to automate routine tasks.
These new capabilities, offered through Microsoft’s Copilot Studio, will enable clients to optimize processes across various sectors, including sales, service, finance, and supply chain management.
In a blog post on Monday, the technology giant, currently the second-most valuable company globally with a market capitalization of $3.20 trillion, emphasized its commitment to making AI-first business processes accessible to all organizations.
“We’re excited to announce new agentic capabilities that will accelerate these advancements and bring AI-driven business processes to every organization. The ability to create autonomous agents with Copilot Studio will be available for public preview next month,” the post stated.
The forthcoming release will feature ten new autonomous agents integrated into Dynamics 365, automating tasks such as lead generation, sales order processing, and supply chain management. These agents will leverage data from Microsoft 365 Graph, Dataverse, and other sources to fulfill various operational needs, including IT help desks and employee onboarding.
With the transition from private to public preview, a wider range of customers will be able to utilize these tools to improve their essential business processes. Microsoft noted that several organizations are already utilizing these autonomous agents to enhance their operations.
Among the early adopters are Clifford Chance, McKinsey & Company, Pets at Home, and Thomson Reuters.
Pets at Home, the UK’s leading pet care company, has developed an agent for its profit protection team, which has streamlined case compilation for human review, potentially resulting in substantial annual savings.
Additionally, McKinsey & Company is testing an agent designed to accelerate client onboarding, reportedly cutting lead times by 90% and reducing administrative tasks by 30%.
Thomson Reuters has created a professional-grade agent to improve its legal due diligence workflow, with tests suggesting that some tasks could be completed in half the typical time.