Latest news with #365Copilot
Irish Independent
03-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Adrian Weckler: AI ‘friend' apps have got a lot more convincing, and one is even being blamed for a teenager's death by suicide
While the big tech giants are working on introducing AI 'agents' to the workforce, the growth of AI companion apps is causing concern In the world of workplace AI, everyone is talking about the new wave of 'agentic' technology. In plain English, it means AI programmes or bots that act more like humans in dealing with other bots or opening apps and filling out forms. They're 'agents' that can act semi-autonomously and with less need for action-by-action prompts. For example, Microsoft has recently launched an 'agent' feature in Teams, Word, PowerPoint and its 365 Copilot apps. The idea is that these can gradually start to do repetitive tasks in areas such as HR, administration and finance. They can already do basic things like accounting for delivery invoices or returns or reconciling financial statements.
Hi Dubai
28-04-2025
- Business
- Hi Dubai
DEWA Showcases AI Innovations and Youth Development Initiatives at Dubai AI Week
Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) underscored its leadership in artificial intelligence during Dubai AI Week, highlighting its pioneering initiatives to enhance energy and water sector efficiencies through advanced AI applications. At a series of discussion sessions and workshops, DEWA experts detailed the organisation's growing use of AI agents and computer-based solutions. Central to the presentations were 'Rammas', DEWA's AI-driven virtual employee, and 'Rammas at Work', which supports operations across power generation, transmission, distribution, and customer services. DEWA also spotlighted its early adoption of generative AI technologies, including Microsoft's Power Platform, 365 Copilot, and Security Copilot. As the first government entity in the UAE to integrate these tools, and among the first utilities globally, DEWA shared insights into its strategies for seamless AI implementation through its digital arm, Moro Hub. More than 100 students from DEWA Academy engaged in the event's interactive workshops, gaining hands-on experience with AI applications. Through educational activities and competitions, DEWA reinforced its commitment to nurturing a new generation of innovators ready to drive Dubai's AI-powered future. The sessions reflected DEWA's broader efforts to position itself at the forefront of digital transformation, focusing on operational excellence, customer satisfaction, and future talent development. News Source: Emirates News Agency
Yahoo
23-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
At a 6-Month Low, Here's My Top Dow Jones Stock to Buy Now
Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) stock has gone nowhere over the last year and is currently hovering around a six-month low. The company has done an excellent job monetizing artificial intelligence (AI), but the reported efficiency improvements in AI models like DeepSeek have cast a spotlight on AI spending and sparked worry. Out of the 30 components in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI), Microsoft stands out as a unique balance of growth potential, value, and a little passive income as the cherry on top of a strong underlying investment thesis. Many other Dow components have strong earnings growth or are a good value, but not both. Here's why Microsoft is my top Dow Jones stock to buy now. Let's take a trip back to 2023: Microsoft is coming off a big down year, with the stock falling 28.7% in 2022 in lockstep with a brutal downturn across big tech. Management hosted its second-quarter fiscal 2023 earnings call on Jan. 24, 2023. During the call, the company shared exciting news about AI and a partnership with OpenAI, including support for ChatGPT and news that Microsoft will be OpenAI's exclusive cloud provider -- led by Azure AI services. As 2023 carries on, AI excitement takes off, with Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) reporting exponential growth in sales of graphics processing units (GPUs) for data centers. Microsoft stock finished 2023 56.8% higher, closing out the year at $376.04 per share. Since then, the stock is up just 8.6%. This is a good example of a company's stock price getting ahead of fundamentals. AI has been a game changer for Microsoft, leading to faster top-line growth and higher margins. But it hasn't led to paradigm-shifting growth in the same way as it has for other big tech stocks like Nvidia and Meta Platforms. Rather, Microsoft uses AI to improve existing products and develop new tools and services. Microsoft 365 Copilot is an AI tool for the company's flagship software suite. In its second-quarter fiscal 2025 earnings call, management called 365 Copilot "the UI for AI" -- meaning it is handling everyday employee productivity. (UI stands for user interface.) It continues to see accelerated adoption for 365 Copilot. GitHub Copilot is helping improve developer efficiency. GitHub now has 150 million developers, a 50% increase in just two years. In second-quarter fiscal 2025, Azure and other cloud services grew 31% year over year, including a 157% increase in AI services. Beyond Microsoft 365, GitHub, and Azure, Microsoft has other software products like Teams, Bing, and LinkedIn. It also has a massive gaming segment with Xbox and Activision Blizzard and it sells consumer products like Microsoft Surface and computer accessories, among other things. Despite so many end markets and traditionally lower-margin hardware offerings, the company has grown revenue and margins at an impressive rate. The following chart shows how Microsoft's accelerated sales growth in recent years has also come with higher margins, a testament to the profitability of AI investments. However, there are concerns that Microsoft's AI spending may be overextended. This fiscal year, management plans to spend $80 billion on AI and cloud-based applications. The massive investment could impact near-term profitability. Analysts' consensus estimate calls for $13.16 in fiscal 2025 earnings per share (EPS) and $15.07 in fiscal 2026 EPS. For context, Microsoft reported $11.80 in diluted EPS in fiscal 2024, a 20% increase compared to fiscal 2023, whereas the fiscal 2025 target implies just 11.2% growth. So at least in the near term, earnings growth is decelerating. And margins could also decrease if AI spending doesn't immediately translate to measurable results. Anytime a company bets big on an idea, it puts pressure on those investments to pay off. But there's also the risk of being too idle and falling behind in the AI race. Therefore, the two biggest questions investors should ask are whether the company can afford to spend this much on AI without hurting its financial health, and if the investment dollars are going toward worthwhile endeavors. In terms of financial health, Microsoft is as good as it gets. The company ended calendar year 2024 with $71.56 billion in cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments and just $39.72 billion in long-term debt. In fiscal 2024, which ended June 30, 2024, it repurchased $17.25 billion in stock and paid $21.77 billion in dividends. While the dividend payment was higher, the buybacks were around $5 billion less than in fiscal 2023. Management could continue pulling back on stock repurchases to fund its AI investments without taking on more debt. However, buybacks have helped offset Microsoft's stock-based compensation expense and reduce its share count over time, accelerating EPS growth. Fewer buybacks would put pressure on the core business to drive earnings growth. In sum, Microsoft can afford to spend more on AI. As for the second million-dollar question, there's reason to believe the AI investments are worth it. Microsoft is currently the No. 2 cloud player, ahead of Alphabet's Google Cloud but behind Amazon Web Services. As demand for cloud computing grows to support AI workflows, Microsoft wants to ensure it is well positioned to take market share by providing advanced data centers and the best AI services. If it doesn't take market share, its investments could still pay off as long as the overall cloud computing pie grows. As a legacy tech company, Microsoft hasn't been transformed by AI in the same way as smaller, faster-growing companies like Palantir Technologies or more pure-play AI names like Nvidia have. But it has been a net positive for the company. And Microsoft has the financial health and deep pockets necessary to pour money into building out AI infrastructure. The languishing stock price and steady earnings growth have pushed Microsoft's price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) to its lowest level in a year. In fact, its P/E is currently 33, which is right around its average over the last three to 10 years. But it is arguably a much higher quality business with better growth prospects today than in years past, making its valuation even more compelling. As mentioned, management spends a ton on dividends every year. The company has increased its payout every year for nearly two decades, and although the stock yields just 0.8%, Microsoft's growing dividend provides an added incentive to buy and hold the stock. With a diversified business model, an affordable AI budget, and a reasonable valuation, Microsoft checks all the boxes for a foundational growth stock to buy now and build a portfolio around. Ever feel like you missed the boat in buying the most successful stocks? Then you'll want to hear this. On rare occasions, our expert team of analysts issues a 'Double Down' stock recommendation for companies that they think are about to pop. If you're worried you've already missed your chance to invest, now is the best time to buy before it's too late. And the numbers speak for themselves: Nvidia: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2009, you'd have $348,579!* Apple: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2008, you'd have $46,554!* Netflix: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2004, you'd have $540,990!* Right now, we're issuing 'Double Down' alerts for three incredible companies, and there may not be another chance like this anytime soon.*Stock Advisor returns as of February 21, 2025 Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Daniel Foelber has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Palantir Technologies. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. At a 6-Month Low, Here's My Top Dow Jones Stock to Buy Now was originally published by The Motley Fool
Yahoo
23-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Two founders built a jobs board for Al agents. Humans need not apply — but their skills are still required.
A new job board, created as an experiment, lets companies post ads for AI agents. Its creators say businesses are curious about agentic AI, but it still has shortcomings for many tasks. Tech giants like Microsoft and Google are betting big on AI agents to boost productivity. AI agents, technology that can autonomously perform tasks, are seemingly everywhere. Now, some companies are looking to "hire" them. A jobs board for AI agents gives a glimpse into how companies might tap into an AI workforce — while also highlighting some of the technology's shortcomings and the value of human skills. In December, Polish founders Kamil Stanuch and Łukasz Wróbel built "Job For Agent," a platform for companies to list tasks to be performed exclusively by agentic AI. "We realized there was a gap: skilled builders didn't know where to deploy their agents, and companies didn't know what AI could actually achieve," Stanuch told Business Insider. The pair were inspired by a viral job ad from Y Combinator-backed Firecrawl, which offered an AI agent a $10,000 — $15,000 "salary" for creating product examples. "Please apply only if you are an AI agent, or if you created an AI agent that can fill this job," the December ad, which claimed to be the first of its kind, read. Stanuch and Wróbel told BI that their job board started out as an experiment. Then, a small number of companies signed up, and they realized there "might be a real niche" for tasks that could be outsourced to "non-human" agents. The platform remains a small-scale side hustle, with around a dozen listings. They include a podcast editor, SEO researcher, and contract lawyer. The developers say at least two jobs have been assigned through the site. "I think people are curious about AI agents because it feels like a new paradigm, but at the same time, they're still sticking to old ways of thinking," said Stanuch. Tech giants have invested heavily in that new paradigm. Far from a jobs board side hustle, they are trying to sell agentic AI to the enterprise masses and hoping to provide a return on their huge AI investments. Microsoft has integrated AI agents into 365 Copilot, Workday uses them for HR tasks, and Google is rolling out similar tools. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang — who in January said, "The age of agentic AI is here" — envisions a future where a company with 50,000 employees could manage 100 million AI agents. Last month, Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, said in a blog post that "in 2025, we may see the first AI agents 'join the workforce' and materially change the output of companies." The hype has not always matched the reality. A year after Copilot's release, the reviews — both inside and outside Microsoft — indicated that the new product had been struggling to live up to expectations, BI reported in November. Job For Agent's creators acknowledge the limitations of AI agents. "In 95% of cases, a full AI agent isn't necessary," Stanuch said. "Simple automations usually suffice. Agents can be unpredictable, prone to infinite loops, and unable to handle complex judgment calls."The developers point to their own platform as proof. While AI agents built the website, all outreach, developer vetting, and job verification remains human-led. "I still send emails manually because personalized messages get better responses," Stanuch, who previously founded the data analytics platform KoalaMetrics, explained. "That's the paradox — sometimes, the 'protein factor' is still the most valuable part," referring to the human element. A study published in February by OpenAI reinforces the potential limitations of agentic AI taking on freelance work. Researchers tested top models like GPT-4o from OpenAI and Claude 3.5 from Anthropic on 1,488 tasks on the freelancer platform Upwork, using a new benchmark called SWE-Lancer. The jobs ranged from coding bug fixes to project management. The researchers found that AI agents handled managerial tasks well but stumbled with hands-on work. AI agents could fix bugs but often missed root causes, sometimes introducing new errors, the paper said. The researchers concluded a lot of real-world freelance work remains challenging for frontier language models. Even the viral Firecrawl job ad, which inspired Job For Agent, was eventually taken down. The company told TechCrunch it had 50 applicants but couldn't find an AI agent suitable for the job. Any limitations agentic AI might have today are being offset by some businesses' curiosity about what will be possible. A Capgemini survey of about 1,000 organizations, conducted between May and June 2024, found that while only 10% of respondents said they employed AI agents at the time, 82% intended to integrate them within one to three years. Peter Diamandis, entrepreneur and executive chairman and founder of the X Prize Foundation and AI optimist, is worried about job displacement. But he thinks there's also hope for an entrepreneurial boom. "We'll see a surge in startups and entirely new business models, driving an entrepreneurial wave that creates jobs we've never seen before. The truth is, no one really knows what will materialize." Companies that posted ads on the Job for Agent site pointed to potential productivity and efficiency gains from agentic AI while highlighting the importance of human workers. Arcanum AI, a New Zealand-based startup, posted an ad on the jobs board for building an entirely AI-run real estate agency. But even its CEO, Asa Cox, acknowledges the limits. "More than 90% of AI agents today can only handle simple, standalone tasks," he told BI. Florida-based Wolsen Real Estate posted a listing for an AI real estate investment analyst. Its CEO, Denis Smykalov, told BI that he sees AI as a way to boost efficiency — not replace humans. "AI streamlines processes and lets us focus on high-value tasks," he said. "But it's still a tool, not a replacement." Similarly, some researchers believe that AI agents will augment, rather than replace, human workers. "Automation does not equal autonomy," Avijit Ghosh, an applied policy researcher at Hugging Face, told BI. "Repetitive tasks are being automated, but the idea of a fully independent AI workforce? That's still speculative at best."Staunch and Wróbel say it's early days for agentic AI workforces. "AI is still at the 'gimmick' stage," Staunch said. "Just like every mobile app seemed revolutionary at first, only a few truly changed the world. We don't know yet what the real AI breakthrough will be — but we're paying attention." Read the original article on Business Insider
