Microsoft’s AI division head, Mustafa Suleyman, is on a mission to create a lasting relationship between chatbots and their users. The company aims to develop a new product line that will be integral to daily life, just like its past innovations.
Suleyman envisions a future where everyone has a personalized AI companion that adapts to their needs and habits over time. This AI companion will have its own name, style, and visual appearance, and will be able to learn from its users’ interactions.
The company’s flagship product, Copilot, already combines chatbot technology with Microsoft’s workaday tools. However, Suleyman is striving for something more advanced – a technology that can form a “lasting, meaningful relationship” with its users.
To achieve this goal, Microsoft is working on new features such as visual memory capabilities and an animated avatar that will embody the AI companion. The company is also exploring ways to make chatbots fun, useful, and personable, in order to win over workers who are wary of the technology.
Suleyman believes that a personal AI assistant will not only simplify tasks but also free up humans to focus on more creative and strategic work. In his daily interactions with Copilot, Suleyman has experienced firsthand the limitations of generative AI technology, including hallucinations and struggles with commonsense reasoning skills.
Despite these challenges, Microsoft remains committed to its vision of a future where AI companions are an integral part of our lives. As Suleyman said in a recent video interview, “The truth is that the nature of work is going to change. Now, it’s kind of unimaginable to think that you’re going to have a bunch of agents working for you at the office.”
With its efforts to develop more advanced chatbot technology and make AI companions more personable, Microsoft is poised to revolutionize the way we interact with machines. As Suleyman put it, “Making chatbots fun, useful, and personable might be key in winning over workers wary of the technology – especially when tech leaders have loudly sounded the warning about their coming effects on employment.”
Source: https://apnews.com/article/microsoft-50th-ai-ceo-mustafa-suleyman-copilot-e7d217f5d9ca9c40929570da2fff734a