Microsoft makes data entry easier with new AI-powered feature in Excel

Microsoft has revealed a new feature in Excel that will allow users to add data to a spreadsheet right from photos.

The Excel spreadsheet software has been helping millions of customers turn data into insights. It can learn the patterns from inputs and organize data to save time. Users can easily create spreadsheets from templates or on their own, as well as perform calculations with modern formulas.

The new feature introduced in Excel will completely transform the data entry experience. Users will be able to enter data with minimum efforts. All they would need to do is click a photo of printed data table. Excel will recognize it and automatically convert the table in photo to a fully editable spreadsheet.

Powered by image recognition technology, the new functionality in Microsoft Excel will eliminate the need for users to manually enter hardcopy data.

Microsoft has started to roll out the new feature for the Excel Android app. The company will soon introduce the same for iOS app as well.

The tech giant had announced this feature at Microsoft Ignite 2018 in September last year. Along with this feature, it had also talked about another AI-powered feature called Ideas, that will make intelligent suggestions as users work on their documents. In Excel, the Ideas can help users by recommending charts, recognizing trends, and identifying outliners in the data.

Also read: Office 365 arrives to Mac App Store, bringing improved productivity to Mac users

A couple of weeks ago, Microsoft also made its Office app generally available to all the users of Windows 10. This app features all the common apps including Outlook, OneDrive, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint, Teams, and Yammer. The Office app for Windows 10 is a simple and easy-to-use app that will allow users to quickly get to apps, documents, and people in the organization.