Microsoft directs sales force to criticise OpenAI and Anthropic AI models
Microsoft is training its sales staff to criticise the AI models of former partners like OpenAI and Anthropic, signalling a strategic shift to defend its massive artificial intelligence investments amid growing investor scrutiny.
Microsoft has instructed its sales teams to directly criticise the artificial intelligence models of rivals, including former close partners OpenAI and Anthropic. During an internal strategy session on Tuesday, executives outlined plans to negatively compare competitor products against Microsoft’s in-house offerings.
Executive Vice President Jay Parikh emphasised the need to highlight Microsoft’s comprehensive approach. He told the room, “Everyone else is selling parts — we’re selling the full end-to-end system. That’s the story that we all need to get out there and tell in FY27.”
Executive Vice President Jacob Andreou specifically targeted Anthropic’s Claude chatbot in a presentation. He noted that within Microsoft’s office applications, the rival model was “slower and less accurate, and lacked the proper security integrations” compared to Microsoft Copilot.
This aggressive sales posture marks a distinct departure from Microsoft’s historical reliance on these very companies to power its flagship products. Recent reports indicate the tech giant has already begun replacing OpenAI and Anthropic models in applications like Word and Excel with its own proprietary systems to reduce costs.
The two companies previously maintained a tightly integrated partnership, wherein Microsoft supplied capital and computing power in exchange for exclusive access to OpenAI’s technology. That arrangement was amended in April to remove the exclusivity clause, permitting OpenAI to offer its services to Microsoft’s competitors.
For European investors and markets, this pivot highlights the mounting pressure on Microsoft to justify its enormous capital expenditure in artificial intelligence. The company has faced a challenging stock outlook over the past year as shareholders question the return on its massive AI infrastructure buildout.
By pushing its sales force to champion the cost-effectiveness and efficiency of proprietary models, Microsoft is attempting to stabilise investor confidence. The strategy underscores a broader industry transition as tech giants move from collaborative model licensing toward defending their own vertically integrated ecosystems.
