Microsoft has announced the termination of the Copilot GPT Builder feature for Copilot Pro subscribers, effective July 10, 2024. Initially launched in March, this tool allowed users to design custom AI chatbots for $20 a month.
The company is now shifting its focus to other AI functionalities within the Copilot Pro service. The company informed Copilot Pro subscribers via email about the change, linking to a support page. Copilot GPTs created by customers will be deleted, and by that, custom GPTs vanish.From July 10 to July 14, 2024, Microsoft plans to delete all customer-created GPTs and associated data. This timeline is intended to systematically remove all user-generated content.
An update from Microsoft:
We are removing Copilot GPT Builder from Copilot Pro beginning on July 10, 2024. This will allow us to focus on different AI features that improve Copilot Pro. pic.twitter.com/5qeCVeeOjP— nat://TheAIObserverX (@TheAIObserverX) June 10, 2024
Refocusing on Business AI
According to a Microsoft support page, the change is a strategic move to prioritize core product experiences by concentrating on commercial and enterprise AI applications for GPTs. While developer opportunities will still be supported, the consumer-oriented GPT initiatives within Copilot are being phased out. The company writes:
“Microsoft will remove the ability to create GPTs starting July 10, 2024, and then remove all GPTs (created by Microsoft and by customers) along with their associated GPT data also starting July 10, 2024, through July 14, 2024.”
“We are continuing to evaluate our strategy for consumer Copilot extensibility and are prioritizing core product experiences, while remaining committed to developer opportunities. To this end, we are shifting our focus on GPTs to Commercial and Enterprise scenarios and are stopping GPT efforts in consumer Copilot.”
Previously restricted to PCs, the custom chatbots could be shared across mobile devices and PCs, even with non-subscribers. Microsoft has notified users via email that all custom GPTs will be deleted after the July cut-off date. Concurrently, any collected data associated with the GPT Builder will also be erased.
Subscribers can save their custom instructions by going into the edit mode of their GPTs, accessing the configure tab, and copying the details before the feature becomes unavailable.
Copilot Pro Background
Microsoft rolled out the Copilot Pro subscription in January, delivering priority access to the AI model directly within Microsoft Office applications such as Word and PowerPoint. Similar in pricing to OpenAI's ChatGPT Plus, Copilot Pro costs $20 per month.
The move to retire Copilot GPT Builder comes after a May announcement where Microsoft indicated a slowdown in its Copilot AI enhancements to refine the tool based on user feedback. The discontinuation of GPT Builder may be part of these initiatives to improve the overall functionality of Copilot.
