Internal data has revealed that some Microsoft employees are spending large amounts on AI usage, with one worker in the Customer and Partner Solutions division reportedly racking up $28,000 worth of tokens in just 28 days. The figures came from a voluntary spreadsheet where employees share details such as salaries, bonuses, and now monthly AI usage.
As per Gadget Review, around 600 US employees reportedly contributed to the spreadsheet, with about 350 reporting AI consumption. While the median monthly spend was about $300, some departments showed much higher averages. CoreAI reported a median of $975, Security $526, Microsoft AI $490, Cloud and AI $325, Experiences and Devices $250, Azure $241, and Customer and Partner Solutions $134. Within these groups, individual spending varied widely, with some employees recording usage as high as $16,000 in CoreAI, $15,000 in Cloud and AI, and $10,000 in Security.
Although the $28,000 figure may be an extreme case or even an error, it has drawn attention to how employees are using AI resources. Microsoft is now monitoring token consumption more closely to identify individuals with unusually high usage.
The company had previously encouraged staff to experiment with AI, but this has led to a trend known as “tokenmaxxing,” where employees deliberately consume large amounts of tokens to appear on usage dashboards. Similar patterns have reportedly been seen at other tech firms, including Amazon.
Microsoft leadership has stressed that the focus should be on meaningful outcomes for customers and the business, not on excessive token consumption. The crackdown reflects growing concern about balancing innovation with cost control as AI becomes central to daily work.