Hello AI Enthusiast,
This week, the battle for enterprise AI is getting more concrete. Microsoft launched a control plane to manage the growing number of AI agents running inside companies, often without anyone's knowledge. OpenAI brought ChatGPT directly into Excel and Google Sheets, betting that brand recognition converts to adoption. And Anthropic went vertical, releasing ten ready-to-use agent templates built specifically for financial services. Let's get into it.
The Big Picture 🔊
Microsoft Launches Agent 365 to Govern AI Agent Sprawl
Microsoft has launched Agent 365, a control plane designed to help companies manage AI agents across their environment. It covers agents built on Microsoft platforms and third-party tools, offering visibility into what agents are running, what they can access, and how to apply governance policies. Pricing starts at $15 per user per month.
|
||
|
Agent 365 signals that AI agents have officially entered corporate IT territory. Whether it can truly govern third-party agents remains unclear, Microsoft can really only control what touches its own data. But the need is real: companies are deploying agents everywhere, and most have no idea what those agents are actually doing. |
OpenAI Brings ChatGPT Into Excel and Google Sheets
ChatGPT can now create, edit, and analyze spreadsheets directly. Users can describe what they need in plain language, and ChatGPT builds formatted sheets with formulas included. It can also answer questions about existing data, spot errors, and summarize across tabs. Available for Business, Enterprise, Pro, and Plus users, with some regional restrictions.
|
||
|
ChatGPT in Excel is late to a party that Copilot and Claude already started. But OpenAI has something the others don't: brand recognition. For millions of people, AI simply means ChatGPT. That consumer familiarity could drive adoption in ways that better-integrated tools have struggled to match. |
Anthropic Targets Finance with Ready-Made Claude Agents
Anthropic released ten pre-built agent templates for financial services tasks including pitchbook creation, KYC screening, credit memos, and month-end close. The agents integrate with Excel, PowerPoint, Word, and Outlook, and connect to data sources like S&P Capital IQ, PitchBook, and Moody's. Teams can deploy them in days through Claude Cowork or Claude Code.
|
||
|
Anthropic is going vertical, and finance is a smart place to start. These templates are essentially pre-built prompts with connectors, nothing you couldn't build yourself, but that's the point. Most companies don't build them because they don't know where to start. Anthropic is removing that excuse. |
Anthropic built finance templates because most companies don't know where to start with agents. We see the same thing in our corporate training every week. Our AI training helps your team identify where agents can actually save time in your work, and shows you how to build them without starting from scratch.
Bits and Bobs 🗞️
ChatGPT's new GPT-5.5 Instant model offers smarter, more natural, and personalized responses by better using past chats, files, and Gmail data for improved everyday interactions.
OpenAI is expanding ChatGPT ads with a beta self-serve Ads Manager, new cost-per-click bidding, and improved measurement tools to help businesses run and understand AI-powered ad campaigns while protecting user privacy.
The U.S. War Department is partnering with top AI companies to deploy advanced AI on secure military networks, enhancing warfighter decision-making and operational capabilities.
The Academy announced that only acting and writing fully done by humans are eligible for Oscars, marking a key rule change amid growing AI use in filmmaking.
Claude shared a guide on how leading companies are embedding agentic AI into work processes and products to capture unique competitive advantages and transform their enterprises.
Claude Security, powered by Claude Opus 4.7, is now in public beta for Enterprise customers to scan code for vulnerabilities and generate targeted fixes using advanced AI cybersecurity capabilities.
OpenAI introduces Advanced Account Security, an opt-in setting offering stronger sign-in, recovery, and phishing-resistant protections for ChatGPT and Codex users at higher risk.
From Our Founder’s Channels 🤳
In his recent LinkedIn post, Gianluca Mauro shares an AI agent he build to automate learning video editing. Read it here.
LOLgorithms 😂
Guess we have to accept that AI companies just copy each other.
That's a wrap on our newsletter! Before you go, here’s a quick recap of our offerings:
AI Academy Membership: Get 12 months of access to all our cohort-based programs and on-demand courses.
AI Agent Bootcamp: Accelerate processes and solve business problems by building AI Agents, without coding.
Practical Introduction to ChatGPT: A free course on using ChatGPT confidently, understanding its workings, and exploring its potential.
Customized Corporate Training: Equip your team with the skills they need to unlock the potential of AI in your business.
Catch you next week! 👋
