Welcome back to Daily Zaps, your regularly-scheduled dose of AI news ⚡️ 

Here’s what we got for ya today:

• Almost all in-house AI pilots fail

• COPILOT function in Excel

• $5 ChatGPT

• 90% of game developers already using AI

Let’s get right into it!

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RESEARCH

Almost all in-house AI pilots fail

MIT’s new NADA report, The GenAI Divide: State of AI in Business 2025, reveals that 95% of corporate generative AI pilots fail to deliver financial returns due to a “learning gap” in organizational adoption rather than flaws in the models themselves. While companies heavily invest in sales and marketing applications, the highest returns are seen in back-office automation, which cuts outsourcing costs and boosts efficiency.

The study shows externally sourced AI tools succeed 67% of the time, far outperforming internal builds, yet many firms in 2025 continue to prioritize proprietary systems. It also warns of the rise of “shadow AI” tools like ChatGPT, which create untracked adoption risks, while highlighting agentic AI experiments as a sign of the next wave of enterprise transformation. Overall, the report points to misaligned budgets, poor integration strategies, and overreliance on internal labs as the biggest barriers to scaling AI profitably.

BIG TECH

COPILOT function in Excel

Microsoft has introduced the new COPILOT function in Excel for Windows and Mac, bringing large language model (LLM) capabilities directly into the spreadsheet grid to streamline data analysis, content generation, and brainstorming. Users can enter natural language prompts—optionally referencing cell ranges—to classify feedback, summarize text, generate lists or tables, and enhance formulas without scripts or add-ins.

Results update automatically when data changes, and the function integrates seamlessly with existing Excel functions like IF, SWITCH, and LAMBDA. While COPILOT doesn’t access live web or enterprise data yet, it can analyze imported data, with usage limits of 100 calls every 10 minutes. Microsoft stresses clear prompt design for best results and notes that data remains confidential. Currently rolling out in Beta for Microsoft 365 Copilot license holders, the feature will expand to Excel for the web, with ongoing improvements planned for array handling, date formats, model performance, and enterprise integration.

BIG TECH

$5 ChatGPT

OpenAI has launched ChatGPT Go, its most affordable subscription plan yet, priced at 399 rupees ($4.57) per month in India, offering expanded access to GPT-5, higher usage limits, more memory, and 10 times the messages, image generations, and file uploads compared to the free tier.

ChatGPT head Nick Turley said affordability has been a top user request, with India chosen as the first market before broader rollout. The move comes amid intensifying competition in India’s AI market, where rivals like Perplexity (partnering with Bharti Airtel) and Google (offering free AI Pro to students) are targeting the country’s 800 million internet users.

BIG TECH

90% of game developers already using AI

At the 2025 devcom developer conference, Google Cloud unveiled Harris Poll research showing widespread adoption of generative AI in the gaming industry, with 97% of developers believing it is reshaping the field and 90% already using it in workflows. Developers report that AI is accelerating development by automating repetitive tasks like playtesting, localization, and scripting; fueling creativity through dynamic level design, animation, and dialogue writing; and enhancing player experiences with adaptive NPCs and responsive worlds.

The study also highlights the rise of AI agents for content optimization, procedural generation, and gameplay balancing, while noting AI’s potential to democratize development for smaller studios. However, challenges remain around integration costs, workforce upskilling, measuring success, and intellectual property concerns, with 63% of developers citing ownership of AI-generated content as a key issue. Overall, the findings underscore AI’s immediate and transformative role in both game creation and player engagement.

Download 19 page report here