Sage Copilot, a new generative AI-powered productivity assistant, will extend from accounting, finance and people management use cases to sustainability automation, the software company said.
More details are expected to surface from CEO Steve Hare (pictured above) and the executive team at the Sage Transform 2024 conference -- a customer and partner event in Las Vegas. Among the items to note...
1. Initial Use Cases: In the launch announcement, Sage said: "For small business owners, CFOs, accountants, and HR leaders, Sage Copilot will act as a trusted member of their team, handling administrative and repetitive tasks in ‘real time’, whilst recommending ways to make savings and drive business improvements. It will create more time and space for customers to focus on growing and scaling their businesses."
Potential use cases, the company noted, include:
- Forecasting;
- cashflow management; and
- generating and sending invoices with simple, natural language commands.
2. Availability: Sage Copilot sounds promising, but it may require some time to potentially make a market impact. The software will debut in the United Kingdom sometime in 2024 as part of Sage for Small Business and Sage for Accountants suites. Additional regional support is planned thereafter, though exact availability and pricing details were not disclosed.
3. Expected Productivity ROI and Potential Pricing: During an executive Q&A on February 26, 2024, Sage team members noted that they will leverage analytics to pinpoint Sage Copiliot's expected ROI (return on investment) for various use cases. Based on that analytics data, the company will set pricing Copilot accordingly, the executive team said.
4. Carbon Accounting Capabilities: Additional platform support also is planned. For instance, Sage Copilot will eventually support Sage Earth -- the company's carbon accounting software.
We'll be watching to see if or how Sage Copilot for Sage Earth eventually competes against Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability, which is gaining Microsoft Copilot capabilities. Microsoft and Sage partner on multiple fronts, and we're not quite sure if Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability will extend down into the SMB sector.
5. Training Models: Unlike mass consumer products like ChatGPT, the Sage Copilot technology is trained on actual customer data, the company said. Moreover, Sage has permission to use that data, company executives noted during the Q&A.
6. Underlying Generative AI Software: Instead of standardizing on a single generative AI platform (for example, Open AI or Anthropic), Sage executives emphasized that Copilot will leverage home-grown technologies and potential third-party technologies based on specific use cases. Stay tuned for potential more news from the conference.
7. CEO Perspectives: In a prepared statement, Sage CEO Steve Hare said: “Sage Copilot revolutionizes small and mid-sized businesses and accountant productivity by bringing trusted AI into the heart of their operations—automating tasks and providing insights to fuel growth and efficiency. It's not just an AI feature; it's a commitment to building a future where businesses can focus on their goals, supported by AI they can trust from Sage.”
More: Check our ongoing coverage of Sage Transform 2024 for continued updates.
