Microsoft Build 2023 – ‘Do Legendary Sh*t’
What is Microsoft Build?
The world of technology is constantly evolving, and at the forefront of innovation stands Microsoft.
Every year, Microsoft hosts its highly anticipated Build event, where it unveils groundbreaking technologies, showcases product updates, and outlines its vision for the future.
During a keynote session at Microsoft Build, Kevin Scott, Chief Technology Officer at Microsoft, expressed his enthusiasm for the transformative power of new AI capabilities.
Scott emphasized that the true greatness of platforms lies not in their foundational infrastructure, but in the remarkable innovations and achievements made by developers and individuals.
“We have capabilities in our hands with these new tools in the early days of this new platform to absolutely do amazing things,” said Scott. “Literally, the challenge for you all is to go do some legendary sh*t so that someone will be in awe of you one day.”
This blog delves into the key takeaways and highlights from Microsoft Build 2023, offering an inside look at the exciting advancements and game-changing developments that emerged.
Microsoft Fabric
During the Microsoft Build event, a highly anticipated announcement was made regarding a developer-centric platform known as Microsoft Fabric.
This innovative platform aims to provide a comprehensive solution for analytics, catering to developers’ diverse data requirements.
Microsoft envisions Fabric as a unified platform encompassing a wide range of tools, including data engineering, integration, warehousing, real-time analytics, and data science.
Microsoft has also integrated its AI Copilot into Fabric, further enhancing the platform’s capabilities. With this integration, users can leverage AI-driven assistance to streamline and optimize their development workflows within the Fabric environment.
Chat GPT and Bing
One of the most significant and thrilling announcements from the event revolves around the integration of ChatGPT as the default search experience in Bing.
This integration marks a notable shift for ChatGPT, as it expands beyond its previous limitations of providing information only up until 2021.
With Bing’s search engine powering ChatGPT, the AI model gains the ability to access real-time information from the web, ensuring users receive the most up-to-date and current event-related data.
A particularly exciting development is the inclusion of citations in ChatGPT’s responses.
This enhancement allows users to delve deeper into the sources of information and explore the references supporting ChatGPT’s answers, thereby enabling a more informed and comprehensive understanding.
The feature is initially being rolled out to ChatGPT Plus subscribers, granting them immediate access to this enhanced search experience.
However, the plan is to make it available to everyone for free through the use of a Bing plug-in, ensuring broader accessibility and maximizing the benefits of ChatGPT’s integration with Bing.
Copilot Plug-in Integrations
Microsoft introduced a significant update for its 365 Copilot, announcing the integration of plug-ins.
This expansion allows the AI assistant to now support various plug-ins, including Teams messages extensions, Power Platform connectors, and tools utilizing ChatGPT technology.
Moreover, users can select from a wide range of third-party plug-ins, including offerings from renowned companies such as Atlassian and Adobe.
In an effort to streamline the development process and enhance compatibility, Microsoft has aligned the standards for Copilot and Bing Chat plug-ins with those used by OpenAI for ChatGPT.
This harmonisation enables users to leverage the same plug-ins across all three AI-powered tools seamlessly.
Additionally, developers will benefit from improved ease in creating plug-ins, facilitating innovation and expansion within the ecosystem.
Microsoft 365 Copilot Integrations
At the event, Microsoft unveiled numerous AI Copilot integrations, showcasing its commitment to incorporating this powerful tool across its product lineup.
From Windows 11 to Edge, Bing, and even Terminal, Microsoft is weaving AI Copilot into various platforms to enhance productivity, streamline code development, and empower users with AI-driven assistance.
These integrations highlight the widespread adoption and transformative potential of AI Copilot in revolutionising the way we work, write code, and utilise technology.
Copilot in Windows 11
In an exciting development, Microsoft is introducing its AI personal assistant, Copilot, to the Windows 11 operating system.
With Windows 11, Copilot will have a dedicated presence within the taskbar for easy access. By clicking on the Copilot icon in the taskbar, users can open the Copilot sidebar.
This sidebar offers a range of functionalities, including the ability to request text summarization, rewriting, and explanations within any application being used.
Additionally, users can leverage Copilot to conveniently adjust their computer’s settings, enhancing customisation and personalisation options.
Microsoft has announced plans to initiate public testing of this feature in the coming month, aiming to gather valuable user feedback before making it available to a broader audience.
Copilot in Microsoft Edge
Microsoft has announced the integration of 365 Copilot into its Edge browser, providing users with a powerful tool accessible through the browser’s sidebar.
This integration enables seamless collaboration between the content being viewed on a website and Microsoft 365 apps such as Outlook, Word, Excel, and others.
The 365 Copilot tool offers a range of functionalities to assist users in their project work. It can aid in drafting emails, populating data into spreadsheets, generating status updates based on chat threads, and more.
This integration also supports the additional plug-ins that will be introduced to enhance the capabilities of 365 Copilot.
By bringing 365 Copilot to Edge, Microsoft aims to streamline workflows and enhance productivity by leveraging the contextual information available in the browser to seamlessly assist users in their Microsoft 365 app tasks.
This integration provides a cohesive and efficient user experience, making it easier to collaborate and work on projects across different applications within the Microsoft ecosystem.
Copilot in Terminal
Windows Terminal introduces an AI-powered chatbot through integration with GitHub Copilot, empowering developers with enhanced functionalities.
By seamlessly incorporating the chatbot into Terminal, developers utilizing GitHub Copilot gain direct access to perform various actions, receive code recommendations, and receive error explanations.
Microsoft further expresses its commitment to developers by exploring the potential integration of GitHub Copilot into other developer tools, such as WinDBG, in the future.
Apart from this significant update, Microsoft also unveiled the new Dev Home dashboard, designed to simplify the setup and utilisation of Windows development machines.
Microsoft Build 2023 Summary
Overall, Microsoft Build 2023 provided a glimpse into the future of technology and the possibilities that lie ahead.
With a focus on AI integration, streamlined workflows, and enhanced productivity, Microsoft continues to empower developers and drive innovation in the industry.
