Oct 23 (Reuters) - Microsoft ( MSFT ) on Thursday

introduced new features in its digital assistant Copilot such as

collaboration and deeper integration with other services like

Outlook and Google, beefing up its artificial intelligence

service to stave off a hit from its competition.

Other AI service providers such as Anthropic and OpenAI

are upgrading their models and launching products aimed at

capturing a wider share of the booming AI market.

If it gets permission, Copilot can see and use reasoning

over a user's tabs on Microsoft's ( MSFT ) Edge browser, summarize and

compare information and take action like booking a hotel.

Previous browsers can also be turned into "storylines" so

people can revisit older ideas.

Along with the software features, the company introduced

an avatar called "Mico" - a nod to Microsoft Copilot - which can

show expressions and change color to make conversations feel

natural, the company said.

The upgrades are an attempt to boost the appeal of

Microsoft's ( MSFT ) browser to gain ground on Alphabet's

Google Chrome, while OpenAI also entered the browser market with

Atlas.

Groups turns Copilot into a shared space, able to support up

to 32 people, allowing users to collaborate on writing and other

projects.

The company has also improved Copilot's health-related

questions, addressing how to ground responses from credible

sources, as concerns over misinformation from AI-generated

responses rise.