Microsoft and OpenAI Extend Partnership

Microsoft and OpenAI are extending their partnership with a multi-billion-dollar investment across several years. Microsoft has been an investor in OpenAI for several years and is now extending the partnership. The latest expansion of the partnership is focused in three main areas. First, Microsoft will increase investments in AI supercomputing systems to support both the OpenAI business and customer needs. Second, the OpenAI models and capabilities will come to a majority of Microsoft’s technologies including Azure services to allow customers to use OpenAI. Third, Azure will be the exclusive cloud provider for OpenAI for products, APIs, and research efforts. Details on this expanded partnership can be found here. 

Why This Matters

• OpenAI is currently one of the most talked about companies and technologies with tools like ChatGPT and DALL-E. Bringing these capabilities into Azure will unlock many new scenarios for Microsoft customers and a new “AI Arms Race” will kick-off between the major providers and companies leveraging these tools.
• Microsoft is planning on bringing these AI capabilities into nearly every product. This will drive major changes in how people work, job roles, and common experiences. This sizable change will unlock both new opportunities as well as fears of job roles.
• Microsoft already has many AI services. Expect to see a lot of focus on integrating AI tools together and using those combinations for many new types of solutions. For example, combining voice synthesis with language translation might allow real-time audio translation soon in meetings.