Microsoft exec warns AI agents will erode app pricing power

Lamanna split software into thick and thin apps. Thick apps are core work tools like CAD, contact‑center software, or Excel for full‑time financial modelers. Thin apps are drop‑in tools that most people leave. He said most business software is thin and will run headless, with assistants like Copilot and ChatGPT doing the work behind the scenes. Microsoft’s own Office apps will still exist but will be used inside Copilot, which can run Office without switching apps. He noted that Copilot pulls data from services such as Salesforce and ServiceNow via connectors.

Lamanna referenced Amazon’s recent actions: blocking Meta’s Muse agent and fighting Perplexity over Comet, while opening seller tools to Anthropic’s Claude. He said Amazon is open to agents on its own terms. He also mentioned that Microsoft’s Copilot depends on other companies’ software being willing to work behind it.