Copilot is the brand name for all of Microsoft’s generative chatbot services, which include its search engine, coding assistant and chatbot. It uses OpenAI’s GPT model, which Microsoft integrated shortly after investing $10 billion into the startup.
Copilot started out in the Bing browser, providing generative AI answers to search queries. This led to increased downloads and usage of Bing’s browser, causing Google to work on its own form of AI search integration in the form of Gemini overview.
Microsoft has since integrated Copilot into the taskbar in Windows 10 and 11, similar to Cortana’s integration. It has also launched an iOS and Google Play app, providing users with the ability to chat, create images and talk to the AI assistant.
Even though Microsoft is trying to build out its own AI division, it is reliant on OpenAI for most of the underlying model. It has begun to integrate other models into Github Copilot and its own AI service, but GPT remains the primary source.
Microsoft sees AI as the next major division inside the company, with CEO Satya Nadella saying he expects it be the fastest division to reach $10 billion revenue run rate. When that will occur is anyone’s guess, we estimate it will reach about $400 million direct revenue in 2024.
We have collected data and statistics on Microsoft Copilot. Read on below to find out more. Want to dig deeper? Check out our AI app report.
Microsoft Copilot Key Statistics
- Microsoft Copilot had 28 million active users across Windows, app and website
- Copilot has been downloaded 27 million times since launch
- Microsoft has invested over $20 billion into AI, with $11.8 billion going to OpenAI
AI App Report 2024
Want to learn more about the AI app industry? In our AI App report, we cover financials, forecasts, usage, downloads, demographics and benchmarking data.
Microsoft Copilot Overview
| Title 1 | Title 2 |
|---|---|
| Launch date | 1 November 2023 |
| HQ | Redmond, Washington |
| People | Mustafa Suleyman (CEO, Microsoft AI), Satya Nadella (CEO, Microsoft) |
| Business type | Subsidiary |
| Industry | AI |
Microsoft Copilot Users
Copilot has sat at around 20-30 million active users throughout all of 2024, with usage split between Windows taskbar, the mobile app and the website.
Microsoft Copilot active users 2024 (mm)
| Month | Users (mm) |
|---|---|
| Febuary 2024 | 36 |
| June 2024 | 26 |
| October 2024 | 28 |
Sources: Company data, AppMagic, Similarweb
Microsoft Copilot Downloads
Copilot has seen its downloads decline since it launched in late 2023.
Microsoft Copilot monthly downloads 2024 (mm)
| Month | Downloads (mm) |
|---|---|
| January | 4.2 |
| February | 4.1 |
| March | 5 |
| April | 2.7 |
| May | 3 |
| June | 2.3 |
| July | 1.9 |
| August | 1.8 |
| September | 2.3 |
Source: AppMagic
Microsoft Copilot Web Visits
Web visits to Copilot declined during the summer, but have stepped back up in recent months.
Microsoft Copilot monthly web visits 2024 (mm)
| Month | Web visits (mm) |
|---|---|
| April | 40 |
| May | 31 |
| June | 24 |
| July | 25 |
| August | 31 |
| September | 37 |
Source: Similarweb
Microsoft Investment in OpenAI
Microsoft has invested $11.8 billion in OpenAI so far. It has exclusive license of GPT, and has integrated the model into most of its services.
Microsoft investments in OpenAI 2019 to 2023 ($bn)
| Date | Investment ($bn) |
|---|---|
| July 2019 | 1 |
| Jan 2023 | 10 |
| October 2024 | 0.8 |
Source: Crunchbase
AI App Users
Over 300 million people use AI apps worldwide, with most of them being chatbots or image editing tools.
AI app users 2021 to 2024 (mm)
Want to learn more about AI apps? Check out the AI App Report
Microsoft Copilot FAQ
How many subscribers does Github Copilot have?
Github Copilot, which offers coding assistance, has over one million subscribers (CioDive)
