Salesforce CEO claims Microsoft has done a ‘tremendous disservice’ to the AI industry: “Copilot is just the new Microsoft Clippy. It doesn’t work or deliver value.”

Salesforce CEO claims Microsoft has done a 'tremendous disservice' to the AI industry: "Copilot is just the new Microsoft Clippy. It doesn't work or deliver value."

What you need to know

  • Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff recently bashed Microsoft for its Copilot AI service.
  • He claimed Microsoft’s AI efforts are a “tremendous disservice” to the industry while referring to Copilot as the new Microsoft Clippy, further suggesting it doesn’t work or deliver value.
  • Benioff predicts the hype around Copilot will fade, potentially sending the service to the Microsoft Graveyard as its user base dwindles.

As a seasoned tech analyst with over two decades of industry experience, I have witnessed the ebb and flow of technological advancements, and the current AI landscape is no exception. From my perspective, it appears that Microsoft and Salesforce are engaged in an intense battle for dominance in the burgeoning AI sector.


Microsoft is certainly one of the leading forces shaping the artificial intelligence (AI) sector today. Many market experts predict that Microsoft could become the world’s most valuable company within the next five years due to their strategic billion-dollar partnership with OpenAI, as well as their early embrace and seamless implementation of AI throughout their technology portfolio.

On the contrary, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff holds a contrasting view regarding Microsoft’s path in the artificial intelligence (AI) domain. In a podcast episode titled “Salesforce can outperform Microsoft in AI,” the CEO shared his views on the company’s endeavors within the AI space, touching upon key events such as the recent Dreamforce conference and Agentforce.

In reference to context, Agentforce is Salesforce’s innovative tool aimed at creating customized AI agents. Benioff asserts that Salesforce might be the world’s largest supplier of AI in enterprises, capable of handling “several trillion AI transactions every week.” The CEO also claims that their Agentforce service embodies what AI was intended for, based on client feedback since its release.

“This must be witchcraft, this is crazy with what’s happening with my customers right now.”

In the latter part of the conversation, the host enquired about the differences between Agentforce and Microsoft’s Copilot AI, prompting Benioff to remark, “Microsoft has unintentionally undermined not just our entire sector, but also the collective progress of AI research.

According to Benioff:

It’s disheartening to observe how we’ve marketed Copilot to our clients, given its performance issues. Instead of providing value, it appears broken and often spills data across the floor. I haven’t encountered a single customer who’s managed to achieve transformative work with Copilot. In essence, Copilot is starting to resemble Microsoft Clippy in terms of being more trouble than it’s worth.

The CEO asserts that unlike Microsoft’s complex storyline, Salesforce’s Agentforce offers a clear view of the real value AI provides, with minimal hallucinatory effects. Additionally, Benioff stated, “I believe Copilot won’t survive,” and he doubts customers will find it useful.

As an ardent follower, I’m excited to share that he envisions agents leading the metamorphosis of enterprises. Moreover, he emphasized that Agentforce is poised to become the premier provider of these agents. Intriguingly, he forecasts that we could see over a billion agents functioning under Salesforce within the next year!

I recently delved into the recent announcement by Microsoft regarding their Copilot agents. These innovative tools are designed to streamline business operations, enhancing overall efficiency.

How will win the AI arm’s race?

It appears that due to recent developments, it’s becoming increasingly evident that investing in AI can be costly. For example, OpenAI spends around $700,000 per day just to keep ChatGPT operational. This expense doesn’t even account for the substantial energy consumption needed to power these operations, including cooling water.

It appears that OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, was facing a potential bankruptcy due to a projected $5 billion loss within a year. This financial strain stemmed primarily from excessive investments in training their AI models and hiring staff. Fortunately, key investors such as Microsoft and NVIDIA stepped in with a massive infusion of $6.6 billion, preventing OpenAI’s collapse and boosting its market value to an impressive $157 billion.

It’s worth noting that some sources suggest OpenAI could incur a substantial $44 billion loss by 2029, largely due to its partnership with Microsoft. This revelation comes at a time when investors are expressing apprehension about the lack of immediate profit from AI projects, leading them to potentially reconsider their investments in this area. As a result, it’s possible that they may shift their focus to other investment opportunities.

As a researcher, I find myself contemplating the financial challenges that innovative entities like OpenAI might encounter when it comes to funding their cutting-edge advancements. Market experts speculate that within the next three years, Microsoft may acquire OpenAI. Furthermore, constructing 36 semiconductor plants and additional data centers to the tune of $7 trillion is a significant undertaking in terms of both resources and time.

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2024-10-16 15:39