Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1512069
12 23.11.2023 NEWS Microsoft's AI-driven Copilot already led to 70% increase in productivity Local company Aqubix to revolutionise digital onboarding in Cyprus EIGHT months after Microsoft in- troduced 365 Modern Work Copilot to help people focus on what matters, a combination of surveys and exper- iments is already showing that the productivity gains promised are real: 70% increase in productivity during the early Copilot access stage. "Nearly every industry is undergo- ing a collective transformation and discovering entirely new ways of working due to AI advancements. Microsoft Ignite has now showcased the advances being developed to help customers, partners and developers achieve the total value of Microsoft's technology and reshape the way work is done," said Microsoft. "Copilot for Microsoft 365 in fact, is already reducing digital debt and increasing productivity so people can focus on the work that is uniquely human." In addition to the staggering pro- ductivity increase: - 68% said it improved the quality of their work and helped jumpstart the creative process - users were 29% faster at spe- cific tasks such as searching, writing and summarizing - 64% said Copilot helps them spend less time processing email - 75% are saving time by find- ing whatever they need in their files - 77% said that once they used Copilot, they don't want to give it up. Building on the early access pro- gram, Microsoft Ignite 2023 has now presented its new wave of AI: a show- case of 100 new advances that touch on multiple layers of an AI-forward strategy, from adoption to productiv- ity to security to a number of tools that enable people and businesses achieve more. These include Microsoft Azure Maia, an AI Accelerator chip de- signed to run cloud-based train- ing and inferencing for AI work- loads such as OpenAI models, Bing, GitHub Copilot and ChatGPT, Mi- crosoft Azure Cobalt, a cloud-na- tive chip based on Arm architecture optimized for performance, power efficiency and cost-effectiveness for general purpose workloads and the general availability of Azure Boost, a system that makes storage and net- working faster by moving those pro- cesses off the host servers onto pur- pose-built hardware and software. "Microsoft is championing genera- tive AI to address critical challenges in business and society. With a com- mitment to responsible and secure product development, we are offering copilot capabilities, industry-specific solutions, and collaboration for cus- tom AI solutions, aiming to acceler- ate AI transformation in partnership with all our customers and partners," concluded Microsoft. THE Central Bank of Cyprus (CBC) has officially awarded a tender to a joint venture between Aqubix Ltd and Info- credit Group Ltd. is collaboration aims to introduce a transformative technical platform, based on KYC Portal CLM, specifically designed for the centralised electronic digital onboarding of new customers and updating existing customer data within credit institutions. e agreement was signed following a tender process towards the provision of the further modernisation of the bank- ing sector through the provision of fast, flexible, reliable and efficient banking services. e solution being implemented across Cypriot banking institutions is transformative and empowers both new and existing customers of credit institu- tions, enabling them to seamlessly veri- fy, authenticate, and furnish compliance details without requiring a physical presence at banking institutions. e advent of this solution heralds the optimisation of account opening proce- dures, promising customers a secure, swift, and exceptionally efficient on- boarding experience. An engaging consultative process in- volving the Central Bank of Cyprus governor has fostered substantial sup- port for the project. A consortium of eminent banks, including the Bank of Cyprus, Hellenic Bank, Alpha Bank Cy- prus, Astrobank Public Company Lim- ited, the Cyprus Development Bank, and Eurobank Cyprus, have collective- ly affirmed their active participation in this groundbreaking initiative. "We are thrilled to be part of such a transformative project and immensely proud that a Maltese product is at the heart of the solution being rolled out. A phased deployment strategy has been envisioned, with the initial phase set for early 2024." Aqubix Ltd's CEO, Kristoff Zammit Ciantar. Aqubix is part of Mizzi Organisation. e company launched KYC Portal CLM in early 2017 and now services over 80 customers in over 22 countries across 5 continents. It has gone on to win several interna- tional awards amongst the latest being a second RegTech Insight Award this year for the Best Know Your Customer Solution.