Microsoft (MSFT, Financials) appears to be changing how it sells artificial intelligence to business customers. The company is reportedly training its sales teams to push Microsoft-built AI models as a lower-cost and more efficient alternative to products from OpenAI, Google and Anthropic.
That is a notable shift. Microsoft is still one of OpenAI's biggest partners, but it also has strong reasons to build more of the technology itself. Using its own models could give the company more control over pricing, margins and how AI tools work across Azure, Microsoft 365 and Copilot.
For customers, cost may be the biggest selling point. Many companies are trying to use AI without letting computing bills get out of hand. Microsoft may be betting that a cheaper in-house option will appeal to businesses that do not need the most advanced model for every task.
The strategy also shows how quickly the AI market is becoming more competitive. Investors will now watch whether Microsoft's own models gain real traction or remain a secondary option beside OpenAI.