According to their own spreadsheet, Microsoft employees are spending an average of $300 per month on AI.

      A spreadsheet within Microsoft, where employees exchange pay information, now includes a column for monthly AI expenses, with a median of approximately $300 over a 28-day period and around 350 entries. Business Insider found no significant correlation between extensive AI usage and bonuses, salary increases, or promotions. Microsoft staff have begun to compare their AI expenditures similarly to how they discuss their salaries. The internal spreadsheet, which employees voluntarily update with information on their raises, bonuses, and stock options, now also reflects their AI spending from the previous month.

      The document has already been explored by TNW. This week, we analyzed the pay data to demonstrate that Microsoft’s workforce has divided into two distinct groups concerning compensation, while the AI spending column raises a separate issue. The reported figure is larger than one might expect, with the median at approximately $300 over 28 days and the highest individual expense reaching $28,000.

      There is significant variation based on team. For instance, CoreAI recorded a median of $975, Security reported $526, and Microsoft AI had a median of $490, while the customer and partner organization reported the lowest at $134 and included the $28,000 outlier. To provide perspective, a Microsoft 365 Copilot subscription costs $30 per month. Accenture distributed one to 743,000 employees this spring, yet the median Microsoft employee is spending ten times that amount personally.

      A critical finding is the lack of correlation. Business Insider indicates there is no significant link between the amount of AI used by an individual and their bonus rating, salary increase, or likelihood of promotion.

      However, it is important to note that this data comes with caveats. It is self-reported, voluntary, and anonymous, involving around 350 individuals out of 223,000; Microsoft has stated that the tracking tool is still being tested.

      This also fits a familiar pattern. TNW has previously reported that the hours saved by AI for employees are mostly lost rather than utilized or redirected. Installing a tool that tracks this data per employee is not a straightforward issue in Europe. In Germany, the works council has the right to co-determine technical devices that can monitor behavior or performance.

      This threshold may seem lower than expected. The Federal Labour Court has maintained since 1975 that a system only needs to be capable of monitoring, not specifically designed for monitoring, which is the reason even spreadsheets and calendars have been subject to this rule. The interest in measuring employee productivity remains clear. Skan AI, for instance, raised $63 million to analyze how office workers perform their tasks and to create agents that replicate their actions.

      Thus, the spreadsheet reveals two insights: working with AI at Microsoft is more financially rewarding, yet high usage of AI does not correlate with tangible benefits, which are not necessarily connected.