Sonny Khan may be a Gates Scholar with a degree from business school, but he credits his most valuable lessons to experiences beyond the classroom. Part storyteller and part problem-solver, this “Forbes 30 Under 30” honoree’s work connects trailblazing technology to the people it’s made for. Sonny’s commitment to deeply understanding their needs forms the cornerstone of his daily drive, helping us both learn and navigate the best path toward the future.
How would you describe your job and what you do? I’m a product marketing manager working on our mobile apps. The role really clicked for me because it combines creative storytelling with problem-solving – you’re constantly figuring out how to make the most powerful technology meaningful to all users. I help ensure what we’re building actually resonates in the market, craft the narratives around why it matters, and work on go-to-market strategy to bring it all together.
How did you first become interested in product marketing and what motivated you to pursue it as a career? I didn’t know what product marketing was in college until I discovered the Microsoft ACE program. Back then, I was really into both the creative side of marketing and the technical side of products – I loved understanding how things worked and then figuring out how to communicate that value to others. That, along with Microsoft’s focus on empowering users through technology really resonated with me, and motivated me to join the company.
“I get to see both sides of this transformation – how the technology is evolving and how people are actually using it in their daily lives. That’s what makes me optimistic about where [AI] is heading.”
Sonny Khan, Product Marketing Manager at Microsoft AI
What educational background or training do you have that has helped shape your skills? I graduated from the Ross School of Business in 2020, but honestly, the most valuable experience didn’t come from the classroom. During college, I founded a non-profit (Paani Project) focused on providing clean water to women and children in developing communities. It started as this small idea, but watching it grow to impact over two million people taught me so much. When you’re building something from scratch, you learn really quickly how to understand what people actually need. You figure out how to tell a story that moves people to action, how to adapt when things don’t go as planned, and how to scale something bigger than yourself. Those lessons about really listening to users, crafting compelling narratives, and driving impact – they’re exactly what I tap into every day in my product marketing role.
What are you currently working on? Making sure Copilot is in everyone’s pocket as soon as possible.
Can you share an overview of your role as a product marketing manager and how it specifically relates to Microsoft AI? I started working on our consumer AI when it was part of Bing, and now I’m focused on the Copilot app. It’s been fascinating to be part of this transformation and to see how we went from “here’s a cool AI feature” to “this could change how people interact with technology.” My role has evolved with the product too. I spend a lot of time trying to understand what users actually want from AI in their daily lives, not just what’s possible. Then I work with our teams to influence that into something meaningful, whether it’s helping prioritize features that solve real problems or figuring out how to tell the story in a way that connects with people. The technology is incredible, but at the end of the day, it’s all about making sure it actually makes sense in people’s lives.
What role do user feedback and usability play in your process? How do you incorporate feedback to improve your work? User feedback and usability drives everything we do – it’s my personal north star. When you’re working on something as new as Copilot, you can’t just guess what people want. Recently, we noticed users kept running into friction with a specific feature in our mobile experience, and we were seeing this pattern across different feedback channels. So instead of just making assumptions, we dug deeper. We talked to users, analyzed the data, and really tried to understand the root of the problem. That insight helped us prioritize the right improvements , and more importantly, it helped us explain to users why these changes mattered. That’s what makes the work so exciting – you’re constantly bridging the gap between what users need and what the product can deliver.
With the introduction of AI, what changes or shifts do you anticipate within the industry? AI is transforming everything, but not in the way many fear. I believe it’ll become a natural extension of our work, enabling people to focus on the meaningful aspects of their jobs while making routine tasks more efficient.
“When you’re working on something as new as Copilot, you can’t just guess what people want.”
What excites you as a product marketer with the integration of AI? What excites me is how it’s becoming this helper that lets people focus on what they actually care about. Like in my role, AI helps me process user feedback faster and spot patterns I might have missed, which gives me more time to focus on the creative parts of storytelling and strategy that I love. I see this playing out across every industry – AI handling the routine stuff while people get to dive deeper into the meaningful work that machines can’t replicate. Working at Microsoft, I get to see both sides of this transformation – how the technology is evolving and how people are actually using it in their daily lives. That’s what makes me optimistic about where this is heading.
How do you stay updated on current tech trends and emerging practice? I stay as plugged in as I can through social media and following subject matter experts (SMEs) in the space. What’s most exciting, though, is going on different platforms to observe how people actually share their way of using AI in their daily lives. The most catching insights come from seeing how users take a product and use it to solve unique problems in ways nobody expected.
Looking back at your journey, what advice would you give to aspiring product marketers who are just starting out on their own path? Get really good at being curious about products – not just how they work, but why they work. When you use an app or a product you love, ask yourself what makes it click for you. Why did they design it this way? How are they telling their story? This kind of thinking helps you develop product instincts that go beyond the drawing board. Also, talk to users whenever you can; really listen to how they describe their problems and what excites them about solutions. At the end of the day, product marketing is about connecting dots between users, products, and possibilities.
