CNBC Reporter Swaps Microsoft Copilot for Anthropic Claude

CNBC’s Bryn Talkington has transitioned from using Microsoft Copilot to Anthropic’s Claude, stating that Copilot feels like Teams. This shift highlights a growing trend of users and fund managers evaluating the user experience and utility of different generative AI assistants as they integrate into professional workflows.

The movement toward Claude occurs as fund managers debate the valuation of Microsoft ahead of its April 29, 2026, earnings report, specifically regarding whether Software as a Service (SaaS) repricing makes the company a buy.

Microsoft’s Diversification Strategy

While some users are switching to Claude, Microsoft has simultaneously moved to integrate Anthropic’s technology into its own ecosystem. On September 24, 2025, Microsoft announced it was expanding its collaboration with Anthropic to bring Claude AI models into the Microsoft 365 Copilot assistant for business clients.

This integration allows users of the Researcher agent within Copilot to choose between Claude or OpenAI models to respond to their prompts. For these models to be utilized, administrators must first approve their use, and the models operate according to Anthropic’s terms and conditions.

This move represents a strategic shift toward diversification for Microsoft. The company has historically relied heavily on OpenAI models for its AI features in Windows and Bing, supported by an investment of more than $13 billion in OpenAI.

Expanded Model Availability in Copilot Studio

Beyond the Researcher agent, Microsoft has expanded model choices within Copilot Studio. The Claude Sonnet 4 and Claude Opus 4.1 models are available as options in Copilot Studio, which is used to create and customize enterprise-grade agents.

These specific Anthropic models are intended to enable the orchestration and management of agents focused on workflow automation, flexible agentic tasks, and deep reasoning.

The Competitive AI Landscape

The competition between AI providers is intensifying as models evolve. Anthropic launched Claude Opus 4.5 on November 24, 2025. Meanwhile, OpenAI continues to expand its infrastructure partnerships, disclosing plans to spend $300 billion with Oracle and entering a $10 billion agreement with Broadcom.

Nvidia has also entered the fray, announcing an investment of up to $100 billion in OpenAI as part of a joint effort to develop new data centers.

The impact of these tools is being felt across various industries, including journalism. On February 5, 2026, Platformer reported on an experiment where a fellow, Ella Markianos, built a Claude-based AI journalism agent named Claudella to test if it could perform entry-level reporting tasks, such as explaining news stories and sharing internet reactions in a Following section.

Despite the proficiency of large language models in computer-based tasks, the experiment highlighted the ongoing tension between AI automation and the irreplaceable nature of professional reporting.

For Microsoft, Copilot is expected to be the company’s largest revenue driver, even as it opens its platform to rival models to maintain its competitive edge in the enterprise market.