Microsoft 365 Copilot Can Go To Meetings For You. What About The Consequences?

Microsoft has developed a ChatGPT-style AI assistant and embedded it into its office apps, hoping the tool will eliminate “drudgery”. It will become available to all from November 1.

Microsoft 365 Copilot can summarise meetings for anyone who cannot attend, while also drafting emails, creating word documents, spreadsheet graphs and Powerpoint presentations.

However, concerns have been raised over the tool likely replacing workers and leaving businesses worldwide dangerously reliant on AI-powered assistance.

Making Clear When Content Was Not Made By Humans

In its current form, Microsoft 365 Copilot could also fall foul of new rules governing AI, for failing to make clear when content has not been made by humans.

AI regulations in both China and Europe state people must know if they are interacting with AI rather than humans. But Collette Stallbaumer said it was up to the Copilot user to clarify that.

The head of Microsoft 365 said: “It is a tool and people have responsibility to use it responsibly,” adding “the human is always in the mix and always in control.”

What Happens If Microsoft 365 Copilot Fails?

Copilot utilises the same technology which underpins ChatGPT, created by OpenAI – a company Microsoft has invested billions of dollars in.

Copilot does not work offline and will cost $30 per month. But critics say this kind of tech is likely to trigger a huge disruption in admin-based jobs.

“What happens if the tech fails?” Carissa Veliz, associate professor at Oxford University’s Institute for Ethics in AI, raised concerns over people becoming overly dependent on such tools.

An Insight Into “Social Loafing”

According to a new study from the Technical University of Berlin, humans tend to pay less attention to their work when they think robots have already checked it.

Robots are increasingly being used in the workplace to assist humans. But the concerning findings showed humans working alongside robots were more likely to exhibit “social loafing”.

Initially researched in 1913, the concept is all about an individual exerting less effort when working in a team compared to working alone.

The latest study’s authors suggest the drop in productivity observed could be explained by “a change in motivation in shared task settings”.