Unlock AI innovation with new joint capabilities from Microsoft and SAP

Microsoft and SAP have been companions and prospects of one another for over 30 years, collaborating on modern enterprise options and serving to 1000’s of joint prospects speed up their enterprise transformation. Microsoft Cloud is the market chief for working SAP workloads within the cloud, together with RISE with SAP, and in the present day at SAP Sapphire 2024, we’re very excited to deliver extra wonderful innovation to the marketplace for our joint prospects. 

On this weblog, we discover the newest thrilling developments from the Microsoft and SAP partnership and the way they assist prospects speed up their enterprise transformation. 

Asserting new joint AI integration between Microsoft 365 Copilot and SAP Joule

Right this moment at SAP Sapphire, Microsoft and SAP are increasing our partnership by bringing Joule along with Microsoft Copilot right into a unified expertise, permitting workers to get extra finished within the stream of their work by seamless entry to data from enterprise purposes in SAP in addition to Microsoft 365.  

Prospects need AI assistants to hold out requests no matter information location or the system that must be accessed. By integrating Joule and Copilot for Microsoft 365, the generative AI options will work together intuitively so customers can discover data quicker and execute duties with out leaving the platform they’re already in. 

A person in Copilot for Microsoft 365 will have the ability to leverage SAP Joule to entry data saved in SAP—for instance S/4HANA Cloud, SAP SuccessFactors, or SAP Concur. Equally, somebody utilizing SAP Joule in a SAP utility will have the ability to use Copilot for Microsoft 365 capabilities with out context switching.

To see this in motion, tune into the “Innovation: The key to bringing out your best” keynote at SAP Sapphire which may even be accessible on-demand and read the announcement blog

Unlock enterprise transformation with Microsoft AI and RISE with SAP

SAP programs host mission-critical information powering core enterprise processes and might enormously profit from the insights, automation, and efficiencies unlocked by AI. Microsoft Cloud—essentially the most trusted, complete and built-in cloud—is finest positioned that will help you obtain these advantages. You possibly can prolong RISE with SAP through the use of a broad set of Microsoft AI providers to maximise enterprise outcomes, catered to what you are promoting wants: 

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1: Unlocking joint AI innovation with SAP Enterprise Know-how Platform (BTP) and Microsoft Azure: SAP BTP is a platform providing from SAP that maximizes the worth of the RISE with SAP providing. We just lately partnered with SAP to announce the supply of SAP AI Core, an integral a part of BTP, together with Generative AI Hub and Joule on Microsoft Azure in West Europe, US East, and Sydney. Prospects that use BTP and wish to embed extra intelligence into their finance, provide chain, and order to money enterprise processes can now accomplish that simply, on Azure. SAP prospects may also reap the benefits of the preferred massive language fashions like GPT-4o accessible in SAP Generative AI Hub provided solely on Azure by the Azure OpenAI Service.

2: Unlocking end-user productiveness with Microsoft Copilot: SAP prospects can use Copilot for Microsoft 365, accessible in Microsoft Phrase, PowerPoint, Excel, and PowerBI in order that end-users can unlock insights, and carry out duties quicker. You possibly can go one step additional by tailoring Copilot to work the way in which you want, together with your information, processes and insurance policies utilizing the SAP plugin in Microsoft Copilot Studio. Now you can customise Copilot to connect with your SAP programs and retrieve the knowledge you want akin to expense data, stock, and so forth. That is made potential with new Copilot connectors and new agent capabilities that we announced at Microsoft Build final week. 

3: Enabling AI transformation utilizing Azure AI providers: SAP prospects working their workloads on Azure can construct their very own AI capabilities utilizing the Azure OpenAI Service with their SAP information to rapidly develop generative AI purposes. We provide over 1,600 frontier and open fashions in Azure AI, together with the newest from OpenAI, Meta, and others—offering you with the selection and suppleness to decide on the mannequin suited in your use case. Greater than 50,000 prospects use Azure AI in the present day, signaling the wonderful momentum on this house. 

A robust productiveness enhancement use case right here is the mix of OpenAI, together with enterprise course of automation instruments just like the Microsoft Energy Platform which has SAP connectors accessible to assist a person work together with SAP information simply and full duties quicker. 

For instance, a gross sales assistant can entry SAP information to position product orders, immediately from Microsoft Groups, leveraging the facility of Azure OpenAI. Watch this video to see this state of affairs in motion. 

RISE with SAP prospects may also consume OpenAI services by Cloud Utility programming mannequin (CAP) and SAP BTP, AI Core. 

4: Computerized assault disruption for SAP, powered by AI: Microsoft Safety Copilot empowers all safety and IT roles to detect and handle cyberthreats at machine velocity, together with these arising from SAP programs. For patrons utilizing Microsoft Sentinel for SAP, which is licensed for RISE with SAP, assault disruption will mechanically detect monetary fraud methods and disable the native SAP and related Microsoft Entra account to stop the cyberattacker from transferring any funds–with no extra intervention. See this video to be taught extra and skim extra about automatic attack disruption for SAP

Extra selection and suppleness with expanded availability of SAP BTP on Azure 

Along with SAP, we just lately introduced the expanded availability of SAP BTP to 6 new Azure areas (Brazil, Canada, India, the UK, Germany, and one to be introduced) in addition to extra BTP providers within the current seven public Microsoft Azure areas (Australia, Netherlands, Japan, Singapore, Switzerland, america East-VA, and america West-WA.) Upon completion, SAP Enterprise Know-how Platform will run in 13 Microsoft Azure areas, and all the important thing BTP providers that almost all prospects are asking for, can be accessible on Azure.

The expanded service availability, primarily based on buyer demand, unlocks AI innovation and enterprise transformation for purchasers extra simply, as now you can combine SAP Cloud enterprise useful resource planning (ERP) and SAP BTP providers with Microsoft Azure providers, together with AI providers from each firms, throughout the similar information heart area.  

New and highly effective infrastructure choices for working SAP HANA on Azure

Final 12 months we introduced the Azure M-Series Mv3 family—the following technology of reminiscence optimized digital machines, giving prospects quicker insights, extra uptime, a decrease whole price of possession, and improved price-performance for working SAP HANA workloads with Azure IaaS deployments and SAP RISE on Azure. These VMs, supporting as much as 32 TB of reminiscence, are powered by the 4th technology Intel® Xeon® Scalable processors and Azure Enhance, considered one of Azure’s newest infrastructure improvements.  

Right this moment, we’re happy to construct on this funding and share that the Mv3 Very Excessive Reminiscence (as much as 32TB of reminiscence) providing is mostly accessible for purchasers and the Mv3 Excessive Reminiscence providing (upto 16TB) is in preview.

Microsoft and SAP Signavio: Teaming as much as speed up transformation

Microsoft and SAP proceed to collaborate to assist prospects of their journey to S/4HANA and RISE on Azure. SAP Signavio Process Insights is an integral a part of SAP’s cloud-based course of transformation suite and provides firms the power to quickly uncover areas for enchancment and automation inside your SAP enterprise processes. SAP Signavio Course of Insights is now accessible on Microsoft Azure and gives ECC prospects an accelerated path to S/4HANA, permitting prospects to unlock the worth of innovation by the Microsoft platform. 

Simplifying enterprise collaboration with new integrations in Microsoft Groups 

Microsoft and SAP have been working collectively for a number of years enabling organizations and their workers enhance productiveness by collaborative experiences that mix mission vital information from SAP with Microsoft Groups and Microsoft 365.

Right this moment, we’re excited to construct on this and announce new joint capabilities with thrilling updates to Microsoft Groups apps for SAP S/4HANA, SAP SuccessFactors and, SAP Concur:

Upcoming options in S/4HANA app for Microsoft Teams

  • S/4HANA Copilot plugin: Customers can entry S/4HANA gross sales particulars, order standing, gross sales quotes, and extra utilizing pure language with Copilot for Microsoft 365. See a pattern question beneath: 
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  • Adaptive Card Loop elements: Share clever playing cards in Groups and Outlook (accessible for pre-release customers solely). 
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  • Groups search-based message extension: Customers can rapidly seek for and insert data from S/4HANA with out leaving the Groups atmosphere.  
  • SAP Group search: Search SAP Group and share content material with co-workers in Microsoft Groups—with out having to depart the app. Whereas chatting with a colleague or a bunch, click on on the three dots beneath the textual content area, open the SAP S/4HANA app, and enter your search time period within the popup window. From the outcomes listing, choose the subject you wish to share and immediately ship it to your colleagues. 
  • Share to Microsoft Groups as Card: Talk higher together with your co-workers utilizing Microsoft Groups by offering a collaborative view that exhibits utility content material in a brand new window and allows you to have a significant dialog. 
  • Entry S/4HANA inside Microsoft 365 House and Outlook too:
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New launch: SuccessFactors for Microsoft Teams

  • HR Process Reminders by Groups Chatbot: Obtain a personal message from the SuccessFactors Groups chatbot, which can assist you full HR duties immediately in Groups or information you to SuccessFactors on-line for extra advanced workloads. 
  • Set off Fast Actions by Instructions: Request and supply suggestions to your colleagues, handle time entries, view studying assignments and approvals, entry worker and supervisor self-services, and far more!  
  • Coming quickly: New SuccessFactors Dashboard in Groups tab. 

Coming quickly: Concur Journey and Expense

Customers can be to capable of share journey itineraries and expense studies with colleagues in Microsoft Groups. This app can be launched later this summer time. 

Microsoft and SAP collaborate to modernize identification for SAP prospects 

Earlier this 12 months, we announced that we’re collaborating with SAP to develop an answer that permits prospects emigrate their identification administration situations from SAP Id Administration (IDM) to Microsoft Entra ID. We’re excited to announce that steering for this migration can be accessible quickly.

Driving joint buyer success 

It’s tremendous thrilling to see all of the product innovation that may finally drive success and enterprise outcomes for purchasers. Microsoft was one of many early adopters of RISE with SAP internally, and is proud to have helped 1000’s of consumers speed up their enterprise transformation to RISE with SAP with the facility of the Microsoft Cloud. 

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Development trade provider Hilti Group migrated its huge SAP panorama to RISE with SAP on Microsoft Azure, accelerating their steady innovation roadmap. In parallel, it upgraded from a 12-terabyte to a 24-terabyte SAP S/4HANA ERP utility and is about to close down its on-premises datacenter to make Azure its sole platform. Hilti wished to be one of many first adopters of the RISE with SAP providing, which brings mission administration, technical migration, and premium engagement providers collectively in a single contract. The accelerated, on-demand enterprise transformation answer was the proper match to assist evolve the corporate’s huge SAP panorama, which serves because the spine of the corporate’s transactional enterprise.

“RISE with SAP on Azure helped us transfer our consultants and assets into areas the place they’ll add essentially the most worth, which was a game-changer.” 

Dr. Christoph Baeck, Head of IT Platforms, Hilti Group

Tokyo-based metal producer, JFE Metal Company wished to improve it’s on-premises SAP programs to a hybrid cloud strategy to pursue higher digital experiences. The corporate selected S/4 HANA Cloud personal version—which gives the SAP SaaS answer, RISE, in a personal cloud atmosphere, and Microsoft Azure was chosen as the inspiration for this. They achieved the migration of their SAP system to the cloud in simply seven months and are additionally driving additional innovation with the Microsoft Energy Platform. 

“We thought of on-premises and numerous cloud providers primarily based on the three axes of high quality, price, and turnaround time. Azure was the primary selection as a result of we had confidence in its high quality, and we had collected know-how within the firm. We additionally actively use Microsoft Energy Platform and different merchandise, and we appreciated the excessive diploma of affinity and integration between the merchandise.” 

Mr. Etsuo Kasuya, JFE Techniques, Inc. Tokyo Workplace Enterprise Administration System Growth Division Accounting Group

Australian mining and metals firm South32 set its objective of transitioning its greater than 100 terabyte information panorama right into a fit-for-purpose ERP system. South32 seamlessly accomplished part considered one of its SAP migration to Azure, reaching consolidation and simplification of its property and constructing a scalable, simple to handle system atmosphere utilizing SAP S/4HANA with RISE on Azure by working with SAP, Microsoft and key companion TCS. 

“Now that we’ve moved our SAP panorama to Azure, we have now extra breadth of protection. Our environments are standardized, which gives our infrastructure workforce with a lot better instruments to handle consumption and provides us transparency round prices.” 

Stuart Munday, Group Supervisor, ERP, South32 

Be taught extra 

Microsoft and SAP are dedicated to persevering with our partnership to serve our joint prospects and allow their development and transformation in addition to unlock innovation for them within the period of AI. There are a number of methods you possibly can be taught extra and interact with us: 

  • Go to us at SAP Sapphire this week: In case you are at SAP Sapphire this week in Orlando or the following week in Barcelona, go to the Microsoft Sales space to be taught in regards to the thrilling bulletins. Additionally, for the newest product updates from Sapphire, check out our engineering blog.   
  • Be taught extra on our web site: To be taught extra about why the Microsoft Cloud is the main cloud platform for SAP workloads, together with RISE with SAP, go to our web site. 
  • Learn extra about how prospects are unlocking AI innovation and business transformation with SAP and the Microsoft Cloud. 
  • Migration affords and incentives: Past the bulletins we’re making in the present day, we additionally supply applications, and incentives so you may make your migration selections with confidence The Azure Migrate and Modernize offering provides you steering, professional assist, and funding to streamline your transfer to Azure for SAP workloads, together with RISE with SAP.   
  • Skilling: Enterprise leaders typically share with us that skilling for his or her groups is high of thoughts in order that the group can higher put together itself for the cloud journey. We provide a number of on-line studying paths in addition to instructor-led choices so you possibly can maximize the worth of your migration to the cloud—learn more