Is ChatGPT the new MS Office? OpenAI targets Excel, PowerPoint dominance

New OpenAI features may allow users to create and edit spreadsheets and presentations without Microsoft Office, positioning ChatGPT as a direct alternative to traditional productivity suites

OpenAI is developing new features for ChatGPT that could directly challenge Microsoft Office’s dominance, according to a report by The Information. New tools under development will allow users to create and edit spreadsheets and presentations directly within ChatGPT, eliminating the need for Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, or any Microsoft software access.

 

The features, which are reportedly being tested by at least one early user, allow ChatGPT subscribers to generate files that are compatible with PowerPoint and Excel. OpenAI has embedded buttons beneath the ChatGPT search bar to guide users in launching a spreadsheet or presentation workflow. Users would then be able to download the resulting files and open them using a variety of third-party apps.

 

This compatibility is possible because Microsoft has made the file formats for Excel (.xlsx) and PowerPoint (.pptx) open source. This means OpenAI does not require permission from Microsoft to support them.

 

OpenAI developing AI agents

These tools are part of a broader effort to position ChatGPT as more than just a conversational assistant. OpenAI is also developing “agents”—AI tools designed to handle multi-step tasks such as compiling reports from corporate or public data, booking appointments, or navigating websites. These agents go beyond ChatGPT’s current capabilities as they will be capable of executing full tasks autonomously, without constant user input.

 

If successful, ChatGPT could become a powerful alternative to traditional productivity suites from Microsoft and Google, both of which generate significant revenue from business subscriptions.

 

OpenAI–Microsoft partnership

OpenAI and Microsoft have held one of the most significant AI partnerships. Microsoft invested $1 billion into OpenAI in 2019 and later $10 billion in 2023 for a multi-year partnership. Under this partnership, Microsoft had exclusive access to OpenAI’s foundational models (like GPT-4) for commercial use, which powers products like Copilot in Microsoft 365 (Word, Excel, Outlook, etc). Meanwhile, ChatGPT runs almost entirely on Microsoft’s cloud infrastructure. 

 

The development comes as both Microsoft and OpenAI have begun building competing features. While Sam Altman has maintained that the two tech companies remain aligned, media reports paint a different picture as the two companies' interests appear to be increasingly diverging from partners to competitors.