Microsoft trains sales team to trash OpenAI, Anthropic

Microsoft held an internal strategy meeting where executives coached salespeople to negatively compare AI products from OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic to its own offerings. Executive Vice President Jay Parikh pushed the message that Microsoft sells a complete end-to-end system, while a Copilot executive claimed Anthropic's Claude is slower, less accurate, and less secure within Microsoft's office apps. The move signals a sharpening rivalry with companies Microsoft once relied on heavily. The tech giant has already begun replacing OpenAI and Anthropic models in flagship apps like Word and Excel with cheaper in-house alternatives, following a revised partnership with OpenAI that dropped exclusivity clauses. The aggressive sales push also appears aimed at reassuring investors skeptical of Microsoft's massive AI spending.