Microsoft and Siemens Partner to Drive AI Adoption

A new AI-powered assistant can improve human-machine collaboration in manufacturing. Photo courtesy Siemens AG

MUNICH—Microsoft Corp. and Siemens AG are working together to bring the benefits of artificial intelligence to industries worldwide. The companies jointly developed the Siemens Industrial Copilot, an AI-powered assistant aimed at improving human-machine collaboration in manufacturing.

“With this next generation of AI, we have a unique opportunity to accelerate innovation across the entire industrial sector,” says Satya Nadella, chairman and CEO of Microsoft. “We’re building on our longstanding collaboration with Siemens and bringing together AI advances across the Microsoft Cloud with Siemens’ industrial domain expertise to empower both frontline and knowledge workers with new, AI-powered tools, starting with Siemens Industrial Copilot.”

“Together with Microsoft, our shared vision is to empower customers with the adoption of generative AI,” adds Roland Busch, CEO of Siemens. “This has the potential to revolutionize the way companies design, develop, manufacture and operate. Making human-machine collaboration more widely available allows engineers to accelerate code development, increase innovation and tackle skilled labor shortages.”

Siemens Industrial Copilot allows end users to rapidly generate, optimize and debug complex automation code, and significantly shorten simulation times. This will reduce a task that previously took weeks to minutes.

The copilot ingests automation and process simulation information from Siemens’ open digital business platform, Siemens Xcelerator, and enhances it with Microsoft’s Azure OpenAI Service. Companies maintain full control over their data, and it is not used to train underlying AI models.

According to Busch, Siemens Industrial Copilot promises to boost productivity and efficiency across the industrial life cycle. “Using natural language, maintenance staff can be assisted with detailed repair instructions and engineers [can gain] quick access to simulation tools,” he points out.

Schaeffler AG, a leading automotive supplier, is one of the first manufacturers to embrace generative AI in the engineering phase. The technology helps its engineers generate reliable code for programming industrial automation systems such as robots.

“With this joint pilot, we’re stepping into a new age of productivity and innovation,” claims Klaus Rosenfeld, CEO of the Schaeffler Group. “[The industrial copilot] will help our team work more efficiently, reduce repetitive tasks and unleash creativity. We’re excited to partner with Siemens and Microsoft on this project.”

Austin has been senior editor for ASSEMBLY Magazine since September 1999. He has more than 21 years of b-to-b publishing experience and has written about a wide variety of manufacturing and engineering topics. Austin is a graduate of the University of Michigan.

The ASSEMBLY Show South

ASSEMBLY is thrilled to return to the Music City Center in Nashville, TN for The ASSEMBLY Show SOUTH on May 1-2, 2024. This is a booming time for manufacturing and the U.S. South is right in the heart of the action. According to ASSEMBLY’s most recent annual capital spending survey, the South is projected to account for 31 percent of total spending this year, marking the fifth straight year this region has accounted for at least 30 percent of capital spending in the U.S.

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