- Excel AI upgrades give you reusable skills and real-time data integration
- Microsoft knows financial workers are an untapped area of the market
- User demand is responsible for the tools Microsoft will add next
Microsoft has announced a new update to Copilot in Excel aimed specifically at finance workers, positioning the spreadsheet software as an AI-powered tool for financial modeling, forecasting, and reporting.
OpenAI and Anthropic are already proving that this field could be a lucrative business model, targeting both finance and legal departments with their own domain-specific offerings, with Microsoft becoming the latest.
The company proudly proclaimed that Excel has been the go-to tool for financial workers for decades, hoping that this AI-powered makeover will solidify its position in the next decade.
Instead of forcing useless, unrelated AI on users, Microsoft emphasized that its users “shape it as much as they use it, telling us where it falls short.”
Skills are the focus of this latest update: pre-built, repeatable workflows like closing boots and updating a monthly report so users can generate accurate information without having to configure it every time. Customers can develop their own skills or choose from a library of common skills, and soon partners will also be able to offer their own skills through Excel such as LSEG, Ramp, Rogo, Samaya AI, Velixo and Vena.
And for companies looking to leverage external data, direct integrations with third parties such as CB Insights, Daloopa, FactSet, Morningstar, PitchBoot and S&P Global gain real-time insights, eliminating the need for time-consuming manual data extractions.
Importantly, Microsoft continues to position its AI tools as an AI colleague, not a human substitute, comparing these particular Excel updates to a “trusted analyst” who makes “transparent and reviewable” changes.
But despite offering native AI integration, Claude and ChatGPT already have their own Excel add-ins.
The latest Copilot AI updates are now available to M365 Copilot users, with a continued rollout of custom skills and partner-developed skills over the course of the coming months.
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