Her approach is to draw on customer feedback from dozens of pilot programmes, to understand the problems that might emerge and make the experience of using AI more engaging. Recent improvements include a real time system for detecting instances where an AI model is ‘hallucinating’ or generating fictional outputs. Here, Bird tells the FT’s technology reporter Cristina Criddle why she believes generative AI has the power to lift people up — but artificial general intelligence still struggles with basic concepts, such as the physical world.

Cristina Criddle: How do you view generative AI? Is it materially different to other types of AI that we’ve encountered? Should we be more cognisant of the risk it poses?

Sarah Bird: Yes, I think generative AI is materially different and more exciting than other AI technology, in my opinion. The reason is that it has this amazing ability to meet people where they are. It speaks human language. It understands your jargon. It understands how you are expressing things. That gives it the potential to be the bridge to all other technologies or other complex systems.

Full interview : Microsoft Chief Product Officer of Responsible AI Sarah Bird answers questions on generative AI, its impact on work, Copilots, OpenAI, AGI, AI agents, bias, and more.