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Microsoft has a problem: lack of demand for its AI products

(www.windowscentral.com)
336 points mohi-kalantari | 1 comments | 08 Dec 25 16:54 UTC | HN request time: 0.192s | source
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neilalexander ◴[08 Dec 25 17:13 UTC] No.46194859[source]▶
I would think that if they actually spent the time and money fixing the core functionality of their core products (like Windows and Office) that they might have a much easier time promoting things like Copilot. Instead they leave their users wondering why they're so hell-bent on shoehorning AI into a Start menu that takes whole seconds longer to open than it should or into Windows Search that regularly fails to find installed programs or local files.
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coldpie ◴[08 Dec 25 17:30 UTC] No.46195067[source]▶
Microsoft is a public company. That means their primary product is not products or services, it's their stock. Selling products & services can be an advertisement for their stock, but there are other methods of convincing people to buy their stock, too. Currently the stock market only wants stocks that have "AI" associated with them. It doesn't matter whether users like it or not, because having a viable business is not what the stock market is currently focused on. So, Microsoft is doing what they need to do to sell their primary product: shove AI into everything.
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hvb2 ◴[08 Dec 25 18:42 UTC] No.46196013[source]▶
> Microsoft is a public company. That means their primary product is not products or services, it's their stock.

Yeah that's a great business idea, ask Boeing how that's going

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1. coldpie ◴[08 Dec 25 18:46 UTC] No.46196065[source]▶
Current CEO:

> Boeing spent about $300,000 to help Ortberg move to Seattle. His decision comes more than two decades after Boeing leadership decided to move company headquarters out of Seattle. Ortberg received about $18 million for the months he was the CEO in 2024.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Ortberg

Previous CEO:

> In 2022, Calhoun received $22.5 million from Boeing. Most of his 2022 compensation was in the form of estimated value of stock and option awards. He received the same $1.4 million salary as in 2021. ... In February 2023, Boeing awarded Calhoun an incentive of about $5.29 million in restricted stock units to "induce him to stay throughout the company's recovery". In March 2023, Boeing announced Calhoun was being given shares worth $15 million that will vest in installments over three years.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Calhoun

Seems to be going all right?