News:
Microsoft announced Thursday (March 16) that it is bringing an AI-assisted chatbot called Microsoft 365 Copilot to its office tools: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams.
I have curtailed my involvement with forum posts to the one-per-day average because I simply cannot deal with the "TikTok" and "MeMe" mentality being shown in the forum. I do not have specific metrics, but my impression is that >80% of the forum traffic could be limited if the Op would simply 1) think and 2) research. And, it is not just young folk with homework assignments any more; the post-COVID brain fog has infected even university students and young professionals. To perform a task as part of a project involves mental connections that intelligent individuals simply cannot make (or lazily choose not to make.) Failure to exercise the brain in problem solving leads to the zoo-keeper being on the other side of the fence.
Now, my take on Microsoft's addition of AI to MS-Office-365. I watched the video. I watched it again. Then I called my wife over, and reluctantly she watched it with me. Then, we briefly discussed what we saw.
From a productivity point-of-view, this tech is a game-changer. But, I see it as a disruptive technology which is quickly going to cause a great divide in businesses that adopt the tech. To utilize the tool, one must type in prose the desired output, the criterion for the query, and additional hints. In other words, the end-user must be literate and articulate. We all understand the golden rule of computing: garbage in, garbage out.
Key words, literate and articulate, will be the defining skills for mastering the current Microsoft text-based AI. The addition of voice-recognition with further add another dimension to an individual's proficiency for mastering AI and securing usable output from the AI system.
My personal experience is that a significant percentage of forum Ops that generate the majority of forum posts for assistance will be unable to utilize the Microsoft tool because they cannot create an understandable statement to express their question. The vast majority of questions in the forums could be answered without the forum if the Op would think and use Internet search.
My prediction is that the "brave new world" will create a new type of information divide between those that can utilize the technology day-one and those who struggle to catch-up. Prepare for a disruptive and abusive work environment not unlike that attitude exhibited between the "haves" and the "have nots". Many who have been put into their positions by sochiopolitical mandates may find themselves at a tremendous disadvantage.
