Welcome to Day 11 of 30 Days of AI June – From Newbie to Ninja. Today, we enter a space where nearly every professional spends the bulk of their day: email, documents, spreadsheets, meetings, and collaboration tools. Whether you live in Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, AI is no longer sitting quietly in the corner, it’s actively transforming how we work, communicate, and create.
Let’s dive into how AI is quietly (and sometimes loudly) supercharging your favourite productivity suite, and how you can start making the most of it. The Notion.
The AI Layer You May Not Realise You’re Already Using
If you’ve used Gmail’s “smart compose” or Outlook’s suggested replies, you’ve already touched AI.
But these surface features are only the beginning.
In both Google Workspace and Microsoft 365, AI is becoming deeply embedded across:
- Writing & editing
- Summarisation & note-taking
- Data analysis
- Scheduling & prioritisation
- Automation & integration
And the pace of improvement is only accelerating.
5 Ways AI Supercharges Google Workspace
1️⃣ Gmail & Google Docs: Smart Compose + Help Me Write
Google’s “Help Me Write” feature now generates entire email drafts or document sections based on prompts you provide. AI models suggest phrasing, restructure your writing, and correct tone, dramatically cutting writing time.
Use case:
Instead of staring at a blank doc, prompt it:
“Write a project update for the executive team based on these bullet points…”
2️⃣ Google Sheets: AI-Powered Analysis
With “Help Me Organise” and “Explore”, Google Sheets now suggests charts, formulas, and insights based on your data automatically.
Use case:
Drop your raw sales data into Sheets, AI can surface trends, suggest graphs, and even build pivot tables with natural language queries.
3️⃣ Google Meet: AI Summaries & Transcriptions
Google’s AI can now transcribe calls, highlight action items, and generate meeting summaries.
Use case:
Forget scrambling for notes after your meeting, review the AI-generated summary to track decisions.
4️⃣ Duet AI: End-to-End AI Assistance
Google Workspace’s enterprise AI offering, Duet AI, acts like a personal assistant across Workspace apps, offering real-time document drafting, data insights, and meeting prep.
Use case:
Prepare for a meeting by having Duet AI summarise relevant emails, docs, and previous meetings into a one-pager.
5️⃣ Google Chat: Contextual AI Search
AI-powered search in Google Chat can retrieve information from prior conversations, documents, and connected apps with semantic understanding.
Use case:
Ask: “What was the customer’s feedback on the March rollout?”, AI finds the relevant messages instantly.
5 Ways AI Supercharges Microsoft 365
1️⃣ Outlook: AI-Powered Email Management
Copilot for Outlook drafts emails, suggests quick replies, schedules meetings, and even rewrites your email for tone (e.g. more polite, more concise).
Use case:
Prompt: “Draft a professional apology for missing yesterday’s meeting, and propose two alternative slots.”
2️⃣ Word: Drafting & Editing with Copilot
Microsoft’s Copilot in Word assists with drafting reports, summarising long documents, and rewriting content for clarity or brevity.
Use case:
Feed in a 20-page policy document, ask Copilot to generate a one-page executive summary.
3️⃣ Excel: Natural Language Data Queries
In Excel, Copilot turns plain language into formulas, charts, and forecasts.
Use case:
Type: “Show me sales growth by region over the last 12 months”. Copilot generates charts and formulas instantly.
4️⃣ Teams: Meeting Summaries & Action Items
Copilot in Teams can record, summarise, and highlight decisions during meetings.
Use case:
After your call, review the AI summary, complete with assigned action items and links to discussed files.
5️⃣ Loop & Copilot Studio: AI-Powered Collaboration
Microsoft’s Loop (collaborative workspaces) and Copilot Studio (custom GPT-powered agents) bring AI to real-time teamwork.
Use case:
Set up an AI agent that automatically monitors your project plan, flags risks, and generates weekly status reports.
The Emerging AI Skillset: From Users to Conductors
The tools are powerful, but the skill is knowing how to ask.
Learning to:
- Craft better prompts
- Refine outputs
- Validate results
- Blend AI-generated and human work seamlessly
…is becoming a critical digital literacy for every knowledge worker.
The AI-enabled knowledge worker isn’t just faster, they’re more strategic.
Caution: Don’t Blindly Trust the Machine
While these tools save enormous time, they aren’t perfect:
- Always fact-check AI outputs
- Be mindful of hallucination risks
- Review sensitive data policies, especially for regulated industries
Responsible use is part of the ninja skillset.
The Ninja Move: Build AI into Your Daily Flow
Simple steps to start:
- Try Copilot in Word or Outlook to draft your next email or report.
- Use AI summaries after your next Teams or Google Meet call.
- Ask Sheets or Excel to analyse your latest data drop.
- Explore Duet AI or Copilot Studio to build custom agents for repetitive workflows.
The time you save compounds.
Summary: Your Productivity Suite Just Got Superpowers
In both Google Workspace and Microsoft 365, AI isn’t a future add-on, it’s becoming the core workflow engine.
The Newbie sees a cool feature.
The Ninja sees a compounding edge.
🔜 Tomorrow (Day 12): AI for Sales & CRM – Turning Conversations into Conversions
🎯 Share your progress with the community!
Tried one of today’s tools? Share a screenshot or post using the hashtag #30DaysOfAI and tag me. Let’s celebrate the small wins!
You can also comment below, on LinkedIn, X formerly Twitter, or message me directly. I’d love to hear how AI is changing your workflow!
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“Kicking off #30DaysOfAI with this How-To Guide. Let’s see what AI can really do for business. 💡 #AIforSMEs”
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