By Laura Hyde |
The Summer 2026 issue of Technology Record magazine is now available in print and digital editions. This new release explores how a people-focused approach to AI deployments will deliver richer long-term results.
“The long-term value comes from elevating the role of every employee – giving them tools that help them operate at a higher level and empower them to achieve new ambitions,” says Kees Hertogh, vice president of global industry marketing at Microsoft.
He explains how ‘frontier firms’ – those who are embedding AI across their organisation – are redefining how work gets done. “They enrich employee experiences by making AI part of everyday work; reinvent customer engagement by using AI to deliver more responsive and personalised service; reshape business processes so work moves faster and decisions improve; and bend the curve on innovation by helping teams test, learn and scale new ideas faster. As a result, frontier firms see tangible benefits: higher productivity, better outcomes across areas like customer service and product development, and more engaged employees.”
Hear more from Hertogh, and read the perspectives of 12 Microsoft partners including Coretek, Intermedia, ServiceNow and Velosio, in the cover story of our latest issue.
Also in this new release, our Copilot special examines how Microsoft’s AI companion is transforming from personal assistant to virtual coworker. Copilot Cowork, developed in close collaboration with Anthropic and currently in research preview, is built to take the next step and turn intent into real actions across Microsoft 365.
“It’s clear a new era of productivity is emerging as AI experiences rapidly evolve from answering questions and suggesting code, to executing multi-step tasks with clear user control points,” says Satya Nadella, chairman and CEO of Microsoft.
Microsoft's AI companion Copilot is transforming from personal assistant to virtual co-worker (Photo: iStock/miniseries)
Among our industry-focused features in this issue, Microsoft’s Bastian Bahnemann explains how financial firms can use AI to combine transformation with resilience and trust; Microsoft’s John Chien explains why the future of robotics lies not in individual machines, but in AI-orchestrated industrial intelligence; Microsoft’s Rick Lievano and Denizcan Billor discuss how AI agents have transformed the management of its Azure network of fibre optic and undersea cables and data centres; Microsoft’s John Doyle explains how governments are moving away from a pilot project mindset to design connected, intelligent AI-powered experiences around citizens and employees; and Microsoft’s Sue McMahon discusses how the adoption of agentic AI is creating a shift that’s freeing up merchandisers to focus on higher-value creative tasks.
The City of Burlington in Canada has rebuilt its permitting experience around residents instead of departments (Photo: AdobeStock/Salil)
Elsewhere, Microsoft partners provide insight on a broad range of topics from AI agents and governance to international communication and data intelligence.
Read all this and more, including news, interviews, case studies and insight from industry experts, in the Summer 2026 issue of Technology Record.