Barclays signs major Microsoft Copilot deal - over 100,000 workers set for major AI boost

• Barclays and Microsoft confirm major Copilot deal
• Over 100,000 workers will get M365 Copilot licenses
• Microsoft is set to invest $80 billion into AI this year alone

Microsoft has announced its partnership with Barclays Bank will now see its Copilot platform expanded to workers across the world.

The deal will see Barclays roll out Microsoft 365 Copilot to 100,000 employees, in a move which looks to transform, "the employee experience through AI agents and giving them access to the information they need most."

This will include the creation of a Colleague AI Agent to help give employees quick access to the data they need most, allowing for a more comprehensive search function, and new dashboards helping with tasks such as booking desks or annual leave.

Barclays Copilot partnership

“Barclays has always been an innovator, embracing new technology waves to serve its customers and colleagues better," said Darren Hardman, CEO, Microsoft UK.

“The adoption of Microsoft 365 Copilot to be the UI for Barclays AI will help them to deliver on their bold vision of putting AI in the hands of every employee, and we look forward to working closely with Barclays to help its colleagues maximise the benefits from using this transformational technology.”

The move will see Microsoft 365 Copilot integrated into Barclays' own colleague productivity tool, creating a single agent that enables employees to access the bank’s broad ecosystem of collaboration tools, portals and online resources in a single location.

This should help Barclays workers quickly find information, improve productivity, and enhance the employee experience. 

“At Barclays, we’ve been leveraging the power of AI, and now GenAI, to drive deeper insights, improve efficiency and create more intuitive experience across the organisation," noted Craig Bright, Group Chief Information Officer and Deputy Group Co-Chief Operating Officer, Barclays.

“Our roll-out of Copilot, integrated with our colleague productivity tool, is a significant step forward in simplifying the way we work, making it easier to get things done.  

Microsoft has invested heavily into AI, and is forecast to spend $80 billion on the technology in 2025, and the tens of millions made in these deals are unlikely to make a dent into the firm’s spending.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has emphasized a focus on user engagement over pure sales statistics, and despite remaining profitable, Microsoft has announced largescale layoffs, with between 6,000 and 7,000 jobs worldwide expected to be cut - equating to almost 3% of the firm’s workforce - just two years after 10,000 personnel were made redundant (5% of the workforce).

You might also like

• Take a look at our picks for the best AI tools around
• Check out our choice for best antivirus software
• Generative AI isn't biting into wages, replacing workers, and isn't saving time, economists say