Microsoft Looks Beyond OpenAI With Anthropic AI Deal

Microsoft is reportedly bringing Anthropic’s AI capabilities into its Office 365 apps. The deal will see Claude models support new features in Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint, working alongside OpenAI’s technology rather than replacing it.

According to a report from The Information, Microsoft will pay to license Anthropic’s AI, including Claude Sonnet 4, which executives believe outperforms OpenAI’s models in some tasks.

The extended deal also ends Microsoft’s sole reliance on OpenAI to enhance its productivity suite. The decision comes as Microsoft balances a complex relationship with OpenAI. As you may know, the two remain long-term partners, but OpenAI has pushed into its own ventures, from developing AI chips with Broadcom to launching a jobs platform that rivals LinkedIn.

At the same time, Microsoft is negotiating new terms with OpenAI following its planned restructuring into a for-profit entity.

Microsoft has steadily been expanding its AI partnerships. GitHub Copilot already gives developers access to multiple models, including Anthropic’s Claude and xAI’s Grok. Meanwhile, Microsoft has introduced its first homegrown models, MAI-Voice-1 and MAI-1-preview, to reduce dependence on outside providers.

Following up on the report, TechCruch reached out to Microsoft. In response, a company spokesperson told, ““As we’ve said, OpenAI will continue to be our partner on frontier models and we remain committed to our long-term partnership.”