An illustration of the top of the statue of The Thinker by Rodin. There is a nest in his head, with three chicks sticking out, and their parent bird flying above.

Tools for Thought

Better thinking through AI
A People-Centric AI Project

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Microsoft Research blog

New Future of Work 2026 | Jaime Teevan, Jenna Butler, Jake Hofman, Rebecca Janssen
Microsoft Research Podcast

| Jaime Teevan, Jenna Butler, Jake Hofman, and Rebecca Janssen

Microsoft Chief Scientist Jaime Teevan and researchers Jenna Butler, Jake Hofman, and Rebecca Janssen unpack the New Future of Work Report 2025 and explore the ideal AI-driven working world. Plus, is AI a tool or a collaborator? And why the answer matters.

Three white line icons on a blue-to-green gradient background: a hub-and-spoke network symbol on the left, a laptop with a user icon in the center, and a connected group of three user icons on the right.
Microsoft Research Blog

| Sean Rintel, Advait Sarkar, Jack Williams, Nicholas Wilson, Richard Banks, Neeltje Berger, Philipp Steinacher, Payod Panda, and Ian Drosos

Promptions helps developers add dynamic, context-aware controls to chat interfaces so users can guide generative AI responses. It lets users shape outputs quickly without writing long instructions.

A digital illustration of a person with a contemplative expression, resting their chin on their hand. The top of the person's head is open, revealing a white bird standing inside. The seagull is holding a worm in its beak, feeding the baby birds. The background is blue, and the words
Microsoft Research Blog

| Sean Rintel, Leon Reicherts, Lev Tankelevitch, Advait Sarkar, Pratik Ghosh, and Richard Banks

Join us at CHI 2025 to explore how AI systems can be used as Tools for Thought as we reimage AI’s role in human thinking. Learn about new research, prototypes, and a workshop on designing AI that supports critical thinking,…

People

The Tools for Thought team is interdisciplinary, mixing experts in social science, computer science, engineering, and design. The team is co-lead by Richard Banks and Sean Rintel.

Members

Portrait of Sean Rintel

Sean Rintel

Senior Principal Research Manager

Portrait of Richard Banks

Richard Banks

Principal Design Manager

Portrait of Advait Sarkar

Advait Sarkar

Senior Researcher

Portrait of Pratik Ghosh

Pratik Ghosh

Senior Research Designer

Portrait of Martin Grayson

Martin Grayson

Principal Research Software Development Engineer

Portrait of Britta Burlin

Britta Burlin

Principal Design Manager

Portrait of Lev Tankelevitch

Lev Tankelevitch

Senior Researcher

Portrait of Payod Panda

Payod Panda

Design Engineering Researcher

Portrait of Viktor Kewenig

Viktor Kewenig

Cognitive Science Researcher

Collaborators

Portrait of Abigail Sellen

Abigail Sellen

VP/Distinguished Scientist

Portrait of Siân Lindley

Siân Lindley

Senior Principal Research Manager

Portrait of Jack Williams

Jack Williams

Senior Researcher

Portrait of Christian Poelitz

Christian Poelitz

Senior Research Engineer

Portrait of Jake Hofman

Jake Hofman

Senior Principal Researcher

Portrait of Jenn Wortman Vaughan

Jenn Wortman Vaughan

Senior Principal Research Manager

Past Contributors

Portrait of Xinyue Chen

Xinyue Chen

Past Intern

Portrait of Emily Doherty

Emily Doherty

Past Intern

Portrait of Ian Drosos

Ian Drosos

Past Resident

Portrait of Gonzalo Ramos

Gonzalo Ramos

Past Researcher

Portrait of Ava Scott

Ava Scott

Past Intern

Portrait of Rishi Vanukuru

Rishi Vanukuru

Past Intern