Microsoft has announced plans to integrate Python into Excel as part of its latest Copilot AI push.
The move, part of a broader expansion of the company’s Microsoft 365 Copilot suite, is designed to boost productivity by giving workers access to advanced tools that can be controlled through natural language input.
Python integration will enable workers to perform complex tasks such as data analysis, forecasting, risk assessment, and machine learning without the need to write code.
Excel Gets AI-Powered Python
Microsoft hopes that by allowing users to perform these more advanced tasks from within its spreadsheet software, Excel can become a better tool for modern data science.
A demo video shared in the announcement confirms that workers can overwrite the Python code to modify it as needed.
Jared Spataro, corporate vice president of AI at work at Microsoft, said: “It’s like adding a skilled data analyst to the team.”
The tool, Copilot in Excel with Python, is currently in public preview.
This new addition is part of a much broader strategy that Microsoft is currently implementing, which it calls “Wave 2.” Redmond says this is in response to the positive feedback its AI-based tools have received in Teams.
The second wave will include additional enhancements across the suite, including dynamic narration in PowerPoint and inbox management aids in Outlook.
Python-powered Excel enhancements are part of a partnership with data science, ML, and AI company Anaconda.
Peter Wang, Director of AI and Innovation at Anaconda, commented: “We are thrilled to announce the general availability of Python in Excel, a major advancement that will transform the workflow of millions of Excel users around the world.”
Catherine Pidgeon, Product Manager for Microsoft Excel, added: “With the general availability of Python in Excel, we are ushering in a new era in data analysis.”
