Microsoft has officially announced that it intends to pay Anthropic more than $2 billion per year for the use of Claude AI models on its Copilot platform. This information was revealed in a report by The Information published on October 12, 2026 and confirmed by a source at Crypto Briefing. The investment is significant because it reflects Microsoft’s strategic shift away from its previous reliance on OpenAI models towards greater involvement with Anthropic.
Why did Microsoft choose Anthropic?
In the summer of 2025, Microsoft faced performance issues with Copilot. Customers complained that the AI assistant wasn’t performing well enough in Microsoft Office applications, particularly Excel and PowerPoint. In response to this pressure, the company began using Anthropic Claude models, which, according to Charles Lamanna, executive vice president of Microsoft Copilot, significantly improved the quality of the results. Claude models proved particularly useful for automating financial processes in Excel and creating presentations in PowerPoint.
Partnership structure and financial aspects
The previous Microsoft-Anthropic partnership allowed the company to use the models at no additional cost. However, in mid-2026, internal cost data showed that Microsoft’s annual payments to Anthropic were about $1 billion, and these payments were subsequently reduced by more than 33% %. This reduction was implemented using an internal „model router“ that automatically routes queries to the most cost-effective model, both Anthropic and OpenAI. This practice allows Microsoft to control costs and maintain good margins.
Copilot usage growth and future prospects
„The number of Corporate Copilot users has exceeded 30 million, more than doubling from the beginning of 2026. Due to this rapid growth, Microsoft is constantly looking for ways to maintain the quality and competitiveness of the service. Copilot currently uses Claude models in conjunction with OpenAI models in Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint. This shows that Microsoft is not limited to a single vendor, but seeks to optimize each task for cost and performance.
Strategic context and possible changes
While Microsoft remains OpenAI’s largest partner, the company is also becoming a major customer for Anthropic. The source mentions a potential investment of up to $5 billion for Anthropic, as well as a $30 billion commitment to Azure services. These figures suggest that the investment in Anthropic is not just a technical decision, but part of a broader business strategy around cloud computing infrastructure.
Charles Lamanna, who drove this transition, has gained greater recognition within Microsoft. His role in this transformation was highlighted in a report by The Information, which even mentioned him as a possible candidate to be Satya Nadella's deputy or even future CEO. This shows that the investment in Anthropic is not only important from a technological perspective, but also from an organizational perspective.
Conclusion
Microsoft’s plan to pay Anthropic more than $2 billion annually reflects the company’s commitment to keeping Copilot competitive and improving the user experience across the Office ecosystem. By using a „model router“ and combining Claude and OpenAI models, Microsoft is seeking to balance performance and cost. This strategy, coupled with the growing number of Copilot users, demonstrates that integrating AI into office tools is becoming an increasingly important part of business processes.
Although the costs are high, Microsoft has shown flexibility and the ability to quickly adjust its budget when model prices rise. This allows the company to remain profitable while providing high-quality AI solutions to its customers.
