Microsoft (MSFT) stock saw a slight uptick on Tuesday after the Windows developer announced a new AI deal with Osmos. Per a Tuesday announcement, Microsoft is picking up Osmos to augment its AI lineup and bringing in a new communications head with clear Xbox familiarity. MSFT is down 1.4% in the opening days of 2026, and has been ticking downward since the end of October 2025 after a strong 6-month rally prior.
Osmos is a tech company that focuses on “…data ingestion via AI agents.” The move will give Microsoft Fabric some extra support, while giving Microsoft access to a slate of autonomous agents that can gather and prepare data for use. Osmos’ material does this by focusing on Extract, Transform, Load (ETL) processes, which are normally tedious time-sinks that take up a lot of employee hours to carry out.
Microsoft’s AI push in the past year hasn’t gone unnoticed. Microsoft (MSFT) had a successful 2025, with the company reaching a $4T market cap and its stock up 15% YTD. While the stock has slipped since hitting a new ATH in November, Wall Street still suggests that the best is ahead, especially if it continues this AI push and the Osmos deal proves fruitful.
Furthermore, Microsoft also announced another recent update to its operations, particularly in its Xbox gaming division. Indeed, Microsoft has a new face in support of the operation. Chris Leggett is now Xbox senior communications manager, tasked with keeping both users and developers abreast of developments in the field. Xbox has been a huge revenue driver for Microsoft throughout the 21st century. Should Leggett succeed in his new role, the revenue coming out of Xbox could bolster Microsoft and, hence, MSFT stock.
Numerous Wall Street analysts have upped their forecasts for Microsoft (MSFT) stock in 2026. Wedbush’s Dan Ives calls Microsoft a “core winner” for 2026, arguing that Azure could move from pilots to broad enterprise deployments as CIO budgets shift. Evercore ISI’s Julian Emanuel adds a cautionary note but says systemic risks tied to the AI trade remain limited, given healthy hyperscaler balance sheets and muted cross-holdings.