This is the final Part 7 of The Real Cost of Agentic AI series. Summary Microsoft has been touting impressive-sounding adoption metrics for Copilot and AI features – from preview sign-ups to usage stats – but these numbers may not tell the full story. With little direct revenue yet from AI services, Microsoft leans on […]
Adoption Metrics vs. Reality – Reading Between the Lines of the Copilot Hype Read More »
This is Part 6 of The Real Cost of Agentic AI series. Summary Microsoft’s rapid layering of AI offerings on top of its existing products has created a situation where old licensing models and product lines coexist awkwardly with new AI models. This post delves into the internal dynamics at Microsoft – how the need
Internal Inertia at Microsoft – Old Models vs. New AI Ambitions Read More »
This is Part 5 of The Real Cost of Agentic AI series. Summary Microsoft’s Copilot vision is often talked about as if it’s a single, omnipresent assistant, but in reality “there is no one Copilot”. Different AI features and Copilot-branded products are gated behind specific licenses and add-ons, leading to surprises when customers discover certain
AI Feature Gating – Microsoft’s Copilot and the New Paywalls of Productivity Read More »
This is Part 4 of The Real Cost of Agentic AI series. Summary As AI “agents” become part of the workforce (think Copilot acting like a digital employee), Microsoft’s licensing strategy may evolve to treat these agents as licensable entities. This post discusses the concept of per-agent licensing – the idea that each AI agent
Per-Agent Licensing – Will Digital Employees Need Licenses of Their Own? Read More »
This is Part 3 of The Real Cost of Agentic AI series. Summary Even as Microsoft rolls out pricing and calculators for Copilot and AI services, estimating the actual costs of these “agentic AI” features remains a major challenge. This article explores why predicting spend for AI-powered services (like Copilot) is so difficult – touching
The Cost Estimation Conundrum – Why AI Licensing Makes Budgeting Hard Read More »
This is Part 2 of The Real Cost of Agentic AI series. Summary Microsoft’s Copilot introduces “Agent flows” – a new type of workflow running within AI agents – which exist alongside traditional Power Automate “Cloud flows”. This post explains the differences between agent flows and cloud flows, how Microsoft has put them under separate
Agent Flows vs. Cloud Flows – New AI Automation, New Licensing Questions Read More »
This is Part 1 of The Real Cost of Agentic AI series. Summary Microsoft’s licensing model is shifting from traditional per-user subscriptions towards usage-based “pay-as-you-go” options. This post examines how consumption-based licensing is becoming the norm for new AI offerings like Copilot, why this paradigm shift is happening, and what it means for organizations’ budgeting
From Per-Seat to Pay-As-You-Go – The Shift in Microsoft Licensing Read More »
