Microsoft is integrating AI technologies into its low-code programming language PowerFx. This integration will allow users to use natural language input techniques and “programming by example” when developing with PowerApps.
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Microsoft announced the upcoming new features at its virtual Build 2021 developer conference. As it stated, these new features will be available for public preview in English across North America by the end of June.
PowerFx is a low-code programming language announced by Microsoft earlier this year. PowerFx is built into Microsoft Excel.
Microsoft uses GPT-3 (Generative Pre-trainer Transformer 3) and the Program Synthesis Using Examples (PROSE) software development kit. GPT-3 is a natural language AI model from OpenAI, an organization with which Microsoft has long collaborated. PROSE technology comes from Microsoft Research and is already integrated into Power BI, Excel, and Visual Studio.
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The integration of GPT-3 into Power Apps represents the first time that GPT-3 has been integrated into one of its own commercially available products. GPT-3 runs on Azure and is powered by the Azure Machine Learning Service. Specifically, this GPT-3 natural language capability leverages a new Azure Machine Learning capability announced at the conference to help you develop models of all sizes in Azure, without having to manage the underlying compute infrastructure.
Microsoft is illustrating the kinds of scenarios that natural language integration in PowerFx and Power Apps will enable, as it enables a whole new level of “plain English programming capability.” Before today’s development, Microsoft Power Platform still needed to understand the basic logic of writing formulas. But now they can type commands like “Show 10 orders of a specific product and sort from newest to oldest purchases” and get the same result.
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OpenAI 3 ’s capabilities. Microsoft officials have said they plan to integrate GPT-3 into Azure and other mainstream products. Officials have already said they plan to integrate Power FX with other parts of the Power Platform, and new natural language features powered by GPT-3 will be part of that integration.
