Cognizant and Microsoft Corp. have joined forces to promote the use of generative AI in businesses globally. Their collaboration aims to make Microsoft’s generative AI and Copilots accessible to a wide range of users, with the goal of transforming how enterprises operate, enhancing employee satisfaction, and driving innovation across all industries.
Transformative Potential of Generative AI
Cognizant is known for its digital transformation services, working at the intersection of industry and technology. The extended partnership with Microsoft, a leader in advanced generative AI, is expected to bring significant innovation for business clients. This collaboration is positioned to support the forecasted $1 trillion boost of AI into the U.S. GDP in the next ten years. Additionally, it aims to accelerate AI adoption and innovation, potentially contributing $450–500 billion to India’s GDP by 2025.
“Cognizant is investing $1 billion in generative AI over the next three years and leading the development of new research to explore its potential for our clients, their employees, and end customers. We’re committed to helping them harness the power of generative AI at scale, and Microsoft Copilot is a proven tool that can bring transformative gains, unlocking talent and potential in ways we can only imagine,” said Ravi Kumar S, CEO, Cognizant.
Empowering Enterprises with Copilot Solutions
As a pivotal facet of the partnership, Cognizant has acquired 25,000 Microsoft 365 Copilot seats for its associates, along with 500 Sales Copilot seats and 500 Services Copilot seats. This move aims to boost productivity, streamline workflows, and revolutionize customer experiences. Furthermore, Cognizant pledges to deploy Microsoft 365 Copilot to a million users across its global 2000 clients and various industries. Through its Synapse skilling program, Cognizant is training developers on GitHub Copilot to harness its transformative potential.
Enabling Industry-Specific Transformation
A key objective of the partnership is to drive industry-specific transformation, reimagining operations in sectors that have witnessed minimal disruption. For instance, Cognizant’s collaboration with Microsoft endeavors to automate up to one-third of tasks for emergency physicians, promising to address staffing challenges and enhance service quality. The partnership’s focus extends to industries such as retail, financial services, manufacturing, and communications and media.
Commitment to Responsible AI
Cognizant prioritizes responsible and ethical AI, focusing on safety, security, privacy, transparency, and inclusion. Programs such as Synapse play a crucial role in training employees for the age of enterprise AI and easing the transition between roles. Additionally, as part of Microsoft’s Responsible AI Council, Cognizant is committed to maintaining top-notch AI governance.
“Our expanded partnership with Cognizant will help organizations harness generative AI to transform business operations, enhance employee experiences, and deliver new value for customers,” said Judson Althoff, executive vice president and chief commercial officer at Microsoft. “By combining Cognizant’s industry expertise with Microsoft’s Copilot capabilities –including Copilot for Microsoft 365 and GitHub Copilot – we will help drive AI adoption and innovation for millions of users across its network.”
Advancing AI Through Innovation
Cognizant’s Advanced AI Lab and network of AI Innovation Studios are poised to advance the science and practice of AI. These initiatives focus on developing intellectual property and AI-enablement technologies, fostering innovation and co-creation with clients.
About Cognizant and Microsoft
Cognizant engineers modern businesses by modernizing technology, reimagining processes, and transforming experiences. Microsoft, on the other hand, enables digital transformation for the intelligent cloud and edge era, empowering every person and organization to achieve more.