Microsoft has introduced new restrictions on employee use of artificial intelligence tools as part of a wider effort to curb excessive and costly AI usage, a trend some companies have dubbed "tokenmaxxing." Jay Parikh, Microsoft's Executive Vice President, clarified in an internal email that "tokenmaxxing is not what we are optimizing for," emphasizing the company's focus on maximizing outcomes that benefit customers and the business. As part of its strategy, Microsoft is adopting OpenAI GPT-5.6 as the default AI model for internal use because this model is cheaper than several other models. The company also shared updated internal Copilot guidelines with employees and announced that as of July 2026, all divisions will have an "AI token budget target." Microsoft has assured that these changes are not due to any financial instability; its latest earnings report shows a year-on-year increase in revenue, operating income, and net income that exceeded market expectations. The new policy aligns with a wider trend among companies, including Amazon, Adobe, Atlassian, and Citi, which have also taken steps to limit excessive AI consumption by their employees. Microsoft has assured that it will continue to refine its AI policies as models and products evolve without slowing down its journey toward becoming "AI-first."