# The Real Cost of AI: How to Redesign Your Microsoft Licensing for Cost Control and Certainty

_See how Microsoft AI licensing, Copilot credits and Azure cost controls can help reduce waste and improve AI spend predictability._

How to redesign your Microsoft licensing for cost control and certainty

With Kris Jackson, GM Solution Strategy - Managed Services, Laura Anderton - Senior AI Transformation Consultant, and Briony Beckett - Solution Advisor Modern Work

Microsoft Copilot and Cowork have moved to a paid, credit-based consumption model - and the moment your cost is tied to usage, your bill stops being predictable.

If your organisation has switched on Copilot or Cowork - or is about to - and someone is now accountable for the resulting AI cost line, this session is built for you.

In 45 minutes, Kris Jackson, Briony Beckett, and Laura Anderson move past the hype to the practical question every IT and finance leader is asking: if I give my people access, how do I know I’m not going to pay too much? They cover what has actually changed in Microsoft’s pricing model, where the cost-control levers sit in how your licensing is architected, and a worked example showing where the savings usually hide.

**What you'll get from watching:**

- Why AI cost has become unpredictable - the shift from flat per-seat licensing to usage-driven consumption, and what happens without the right controls in place
- What’s changed with Microsoft specifically: Copilot and Cowork credits and tokens layered on top of your existing licensing, not a simple per-seat cost
- Where the redesign levers sit - E5 to E7 bundling decisions and Azure consumption controls that let you run leaner without losing capability
- How removing waste in what you already pay for frees up the budget to fund AI consumption
- A worked example of where the biggest licensing savings usually hide, so you can size up your own estate rather than work from a generic checklist
- A practical first step to see how optimised your current licensing really is

Who this is for

CIOs, IT and infrastructure leaders, Microsoft 365 and Azure administrators, procurement and vendor-management leaders, and CFOs and finance leaders across ANZ organisations who own or influence Microsoft spend - plus anyone rolling out Copilot or Cowork who is now accountable for the AI cost line.