Microsoft shifts Copilot cowork billing to usage based pricing
Microsoft just changed how businesses pay for its Copilot Cowork AI tool: now companies will be billed based on how much they actually use it, instead of a flat unlimited fee.
This update comes after some users racked up unexpectedly high costs under the old system.
Charles Lamanna, who leads Copilot at Microsoft, said the tool really boosts productivity by handling complex tasks, but heavy use made things tricky financially.
Microsoft tests DeepSeek v4 for Copilot
To keep costs down, Microsoft is testing out new AI models like a tweaked version of DeepSeek V4, which could join or even replace the current Anthropic tech behind Copilot.
Users might get to choose this option soon, with all data staying secure on Azure.
Meanwhile, Copilot Cowork is already popular with more than half of Fortune 500 companies have already tested the platform.
And heads up: Microsoft's own Cowork 1 model is launching soon as another budget-friendly choice for big teams.