Microsoft (MSFT.US) and professional services firm EY have announced a joint initiative to invest more than $1 billion over five years to accelerate the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) by businesses and organizations. The companies stated they will deploy integrated, industry-specific teams comprising engineers and business consultants. Together, they will develop and deliver secure, tailored AI solutions focused on clients' most valuable business opportunities. The partners believe this approach will enable enterprises to speed up their AI implementation.
Initially, the services and solutions will concentrate on key sectors including financial services, industrial and energy, consumer and retail, government, and healthcare. The focus within these industries will be on functions such as finance, tax, risk, human resources (HR), and supply chain.
The initiative is built on a foundation where EY serves as the "Client Zero," using its own organization to validate the application of Microsoft's technologies. EY initially deployed Microsoft's AI tool, Copilot, to 150,000 users, reporting a 15% increase in productivity, which has been reinvested into client delivery and learning. The firm has since expanded Copilot access to over 400,000 employees globally via Microsoft 365 E7, embedding AI agent capabilities across the enterprise.
Judson Althoff, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer at Microsoft, commented: "Our initiative combines Microsoft's trusted AI platform and engineering teams with EY's industry expertise and its experience as 'Client Zero'—applying these technologies within its own organization. This will help customers move beyond pilot projects to enterprise-scale execution, strengthening decision-making and delivering measurable impact."
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