Navigating the Copilot Landscape: Artificial Intelligence Risks and Best Practices for Business

The recent surge of AI-powered tools like Microsoft Copilot has ignited a wave of innovation across industries. And while the promised AI productivity  boost offers immense potential, there are also significant risks of artificial intelligence in business, and potential pitfalls that it’s crucial to consider.

Dan Hall - Technologist for Data Centre & Cloud Practice 

What’s the worst that could happen? AI risks that could jeopardise your business

Being prepared for adverse situations doesn’t mean they’re likely to happen; it’s just that you need to know what to avoid to minimise any potential damage. So, what are the risks of artificial intelligence that all businesses should be aware of?

Data privacy and security
With GDPR and the Data Protection Act setting out strict requirements for businesses collecting, storing, and using personal data, the potential for AI-related data breaches is a particular concern. AI systems often handle large amounts of sensitive data, making them attractive targets for cyberattacks. Meanwhile, the inner workings of complex AI models can be opaque, making it difficult to understand how they arrive at decisions (and what data they may have manipulated in order to do so). 

• Best practice recommendation: Take proactive steps to protect business and customer data by offering training and setting out clear guidance for all users. Ensuring that they understand the artificial intelligence risks.  

• Best practice recommendation: When adopting AI tools like Copilot, establish clearly defined roles and ownership structures within the business, implementing robust data governance practices and access controls where appropriate.

Ethical considerations and bias
Transparency is an important ethical consideration in business, but AI systems are often opaque in their decision-making. Because of this, AI tools can unwittingly reflect bias in the data they have been trained on. For example, artificial intelligence risks related to bias can include unlawful and unethical discrimination against particular groups. 

• Best practice recommendation: Strive for transparency in how AI systems are used, creating and implementing ethical guidelines for responsible use of AI within the organisation.

How to mitigate artificial intelligence risks when implementing Microsoft Copilots

Reassuringly, Microsoft follows a robust set of responsible AI principles covering fairness, reliability and safety, privacy and security, inclusiveness, transparency and accountability. These principles and its responsible AI standard cover the development and deployment of Copilots, meaning businesses can trust that Copilot products are covered by these promises. 

But as we’ve seen, there are still plenty of artificial intelligence business risks that need to be managed internally by businesses rather than externally by partners. Here are some best practices to consider when incorporating AI tools including Microsoft365 Copilot into your business workflows:

1. Maintain human oversight. There should always be someone in the driving seat, capable of using their expertise and judgement to critically evaluate AI suggestions.
2. Prioritise transparency. Set out clear guidelines around how AI is used in decision-making, and ensure that key decisions are documented.
3. Implement robust data governance. Establish company-wide practices that define data collection, usage, storage, and access controls to ensure privacy and security.
4. Monitor and evaluate. Regularly assess the impact that Copilot and other AI tools are having on your projects, identifying, and addressing any potential biases or unintended consequences.

Unlock your business potential with the Microsoft Copilot portfolio and CAE 
Ready to unlock the potential of AI for your business? We can help you navigate the use cases for AI in your business and help you understand the right flavour of AI for you. For expert guidance on adopting Microsoft Copilots and AI responsibly, contact our team today.