Microsoft’s Shift Toward AI and Agents

Summary: Microsoft Ignite 2025 made clear that Microsoft’s vision for the future is AI- and data-centric, not application-centric. Instead of focusing on new modules or interfaces, the company emphasized a unified data foundation, an “intelligence layer,” and AI agents that can act autonomously across systems.

Click team members, Frank Paterno and Anne Zemlicka-Hayes, recently attended Microsoft’s annual flagship conference, Microsoft Ignite, for IT professionals, developers, and partners. The following  are our key takeaways for Microsoft partners and customers:

At Microsoft Ignite, the clearest message wasn’t a new interface, a new module, or a flashier business app. It was something more foundational: Microsoft is re-centering its strategy around AI agents, a unified data platform, and an intelligence layer that sits above traditional applications.

In other words, Microsoft’s future looks less application-centric and more AI- and data-centric, where the value shifts from what users click on, to what intelligent systems can orchestrate on their behalf.

The big message: AI isn’t “faster work,” it’s “new work”

A recurring theme across keynotes was that AI shouldn’t be framed as simply making today’s processes more efficient. The emphasis was on AI enabling entirely new capabilities, including new workflows and new business models.

Microsoft also leaned heavily into the idea of “frontier firms,” organizations that redesign how they operate around AI rather than “adding AI on top” of existing processes. Alongside that vision, they addressed common reasons AI initiatives fail:

• Misalignment between IT and business leaders
• Data complexity and governance hurdles
• Regulatory and risk concerns
• Lots of experimentation, but not enough deployment

Two concepts came up repeatedly as the foundation for scaling AI: trust and intelligence.

A recurring theme across keynotes was that AI shouldn’t be framed as simply making today’s processes more efficient. The emphasis was on AI enabling entirely new capabilities, including new workflows and new business models.

Copilot + agents: the next “platform layer”

The most consistent focus was the combination of:

• Copilot as the user-facing intelligence layer
• WorkIQ and related orchestration concepts
• AI agents as the execution layer (digital teammates that can complete tasks and processes)

Microsoft described agents as becoming embedded across Microsoft 365, helping move work forward with less manual coordination. They also cited big growth expectations for agents over the next several years and positioned Microsoft as wanting to become a kind of control plane for managing them.

One notable governance angle: Agent365 (as described at the event) was positioned as an administrative framework for agents, covering things like governance, access control, registry, and security. All aimed at reducing the risk of unmanaged or inconsistent use (“shadow AI”) in organizations.

Implications for CRM and marketing: the spotlight is shifting

One of the more interesting takeaways: CRM and Marketing were not major headline topics in the large keynotes. They showed up more in breakouts and even there, the framing was less about the applications themselves and more about what agents can do on top of CRM and marketing data.

This suggests an important directional shift: rather than treating CRM/marketing interfaces as the primary product story, Microsoft’s strategic emphasis appears to be:

• Owning the data layer (e.g., Fabric/OneLake/Dataverse concepts)
• Owning the intelligence layer (Copilot + orchestration)
• Providing agents that execute sales and marketing work

A reasonable interpretation is that, over time, the day-to-day “experience” may increasingly be the agent, not the traditional CRM screen. The applications don’t disappear, but they may matter more as systems of data and triggers than as the place humans spend their time.

Sales (and a hint of marketing): from “system of record” to “system of action”

Microsoft introduced several sales-oriented agents (for tasks like research, qualification, and deal support), plus a Sales Development Agent surfaced via Azure Marketplace (not strictly tied to Dynamics in the way many expect).

The narrative was clear: shifting from CRM as a “system of record” to a “system of action,” where:

• Sellers focus on relationships, context, and storytelling
• Agents handle research, follow-up workflows, CRM updates, qualification steps, and repetitive execution

“Ubiquitous innovation”: everyone builds, not just developers

Another consistent push: Microsoft wants AI building to be accessible at many skill levels:

• Individuals describe an app/workflow and Copilot helps generate it
• Domain experts use Copilot Studio to create scalable agents
• Developers accelerate delivery via GitHub Copilot, including expanded model options (with references to third-party model ecosystems as well)

This reinforces the same meta-message: the interface is less the product than the capability to generate, orchestrate, and govern intelligence across work.

A few additional observations

A handful of notable supporting notes from sessions and side conversations:

• Continued expansion of Azure infrastructure (including a new Atlanta data center referenced)
• Stronger language around “digital labor” and “digital employees”
• “Foundry” positioned as a major application platform direction for AI development
• Consistent guidance to partners: adopt AI internally first (“customer zero”)

Closing perspective: the agent becomes the new UI

Our biggest takeaway from Ignite is that Microsoft’s strategy is converging on a simple idea: AI agents + governed data + an intelligence layer will matter more than traditional business application experiences.

CRM and Marketing are still important concepts—but the center of gravity is moving. The future Microsoft is describing is one where:

• Data lives in Microsoft’s cloud
• Intelligence is delivered through Copilot-like experiences
• Agents execute work across systems
• The “primary interface” becomes the agent-driven workflow, not the app screen

That’s a meaningful shift in how enterprise software is positioned, and it will likely influence how organizations think about platforms, partners, adoption, and value creation over the next few years.

       Frank Paterno, SVP, Partner Business