- Only 3.3% of Microsoft 365 users actually pay for Copilot
- Microsoft reports 15 million paid seats despite 450 million free users
- Satya Nadella claims Copilot is a “true daily habit” globally
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella recently declared its Copilot platform is “becoming a true daily habit,” noting growth across AI chats, search, browsing, shopping, and operating system integrations.
On paper, Microsoft reports 15 million paid Microsoft 365 Copilot seats, showing 160 percent growth year over year.
However The Register reports only 3.3% of Microsoft 365 and Office 365 users who access Copilot Chat actually pay for it.
Paid adoption lags far behind overall usage
Analyst Mary Jo Foley points out that roughly 450 million commercial Microsoft 365 users have access to Copilot for free, meaning the paid base is comparatively tiny.
Nadella emphasized daily habits, claiming “daily active users are up tenfold year over year,” with conversations per user doubling.
However, the scale of non-paying users undermines the perception of widespread adoption, despite the CEO’s statements.
Microsoft’s investment in AI tools reached $37.5 billion in FY26 Q2, spanning Microsoft 365 Copilot, GitHub Copilot, and other productivity tools.
CFO Amy Hood said judging AI spend solely by Azure revenue is misleading, explaining, “I think many investors are doing a very direct correlation between the capex spend and seeing an Azure revenue number.”
Hood added that a large share of AI capacity is first allocated to Microsoft products before external Azure clients.
Nadella reinforced this, telling investors to focus on the long game rather than short-term uptake.
These remarks acknowledge the current disconnect between massive AI spending and minimal paid Copilot adoption.
Microsoft 365 Copilot launched in late 2023 as a $30-per-user monthly add-on.
It integrates AI tools across Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Teams. Copilot acts on behalf of users, searching documents, analyzing meetings, and automating routine workflows.
Microsoft claims it boosts productivity, and Lloyds Banking Group estimates it saves staff 46 minutes per day.
Despite these claims, paid adoption remains low relative to Microsoft’s global user base.
Even within Microsoft, there are reports that Copilot’s rollout is under review and the company may remove or streamline AI features in Windows 11.
Not just Windows 11, the company is reportedly also willing to cut AI features in other apps where usage does not justify the investment.
Foley notes the massive free user base further emphasizes how few users pay. Nadella insists Copilot is growing rapidly, yet the figures show the paid footprint is extremely limited.
The gap between claimed “true daily habit” usage and actual revenue suggests the long-term payoff for Microsoft’s AI investment remains uncertain.
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