Copilot could become a ‘toxic brand‘ because of pushy way Microsoft is adding it to Microsoft Office. We have some ‘modest proposals’ for how Microsoft can improve their AI offering and keep paying customers onside.
Or, put another way, some grumbles about the way Microsoft is force-feeding Copilot to its Microsoft 365/Office customers.
Why ‘Copilot’ is running the risk of becoming a hated ‘toxic’ brand.
Be more subtle
At the moment is Microsoft zealously putting Copilot all over the places where people work, disrupting their Word documents and Excel sheets with no way to hide these pesky onscreen intrusions.
There was a time when Microsoft had the aim of keeping the customers workspace ‘clean’ (e.g. document, sheet or slide) meaning little appears to get in the way of what the user is working on. Almost all tools and features are either hidden (right-mouse click), away from the workspace (ribbon, status bar) or very subtle (underlines for spelling, grammar, style). Most of those can be hidden by the customer.
That’s all gone now with icons and menus appearing while people work. The Copilot ‘bug’ in Excel being the worst offender.
Word’s Copilot Summary is a thrice-damned nuisance with no way to remove it when not wanted or request when needed! Microsoft is so deaf to complaints, they persist in pushing Copilot Summary as if it’s universally loved and admired, Copilot now worse in Word on the web.
Microsoft’s ‘fix’ is to disable Copilot completely. This option might be at File | Options | Copilot (Mac: App | Preferences | Copilot) but not all Copilot-able customers have been given that option.
Far better would be a Copilot ‘On / Off’ button on the ribbon that works on a per-document basis. That would let customers disable Copilot when it’s not appropriate but have AI appear when wanted.
Copilot should be like Dictation or Read Aloud, available on request but otherwise just sitting on the ribbon.
Alas, that’s not likely because intrusive Copilot is more about selling the AI service than the convenience of customers. Microsoft is so sure that Copilot is indispensable they can’t conceive of someone not wanting the AI popping up in their work.
The company has spent billons on AI and is so focused on getting their money back on the investment that they’ve lost sight of what customers need to get their daily work done.
Until and unless Microsoft gets the message from its customers, Office Watch has to explain to Microsoft 365 users where Copilot is now appearing and how, if possible, to hide it.
How to Disable Copilot in Microsoft 365
Stop Copilot appearing in Microsoft 365
Overpromising
Redmond is almost hyperventilating with their Copilot promises which could lead people to disappointment when they use it themselves.
We weren’t surprised that Copilot came last in a Washington Post comparison on major AI services.
Crippled and censored AI
Copilot is really a crippled and censored version of OpenAI’s ChatGPT (which is the technical basis for Copilot). That’s why Copilot’s responses are often wooden corporate speak, even when you ask for a different writing style. Copilot will sometimes refuse innocent requests because the AI thinks the prompt is outside their ‘community’ standards. For ‘community’ read ‘corporate’ standards.
Switching to ChatGPT gives you many more options and far better responses than Copilot.
Copilot badly needs to be loosened up with some options for less or more restrictions. In other words, give the paying customer choices instead of the current ‘one size fits all’ approach.
Copilot is a toxic brand
Microsoft needs to change their Copilot focus quickly. It’s rapidly becoming a toxic brand as people see it appearing, unwanted, in their Microsoft 365 apps. Ot they try to use Copilot and discover it’s nowhere near as helpful as the hype promises.
Copilot will slowly give better, more appropriate responses as AI technology improves.
More important in the short term, Copilot needs to be less intrusive in Office apps. Available when paying customers want it and hidden otherwise.
How to Disable Copilot in Microsoft 365
Stop Copilot appearing in Microsoft 365
