Microsoft’s CEO Satya Nadella is getting ready for his yearly visit to India on February 7 and 8, where he will be looking into the world of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the exciting opportunities it offers. This visit shows that Microsoft is committed to using technology to make more opportunities in the country. Puneet Chandok, the head of Microsoft in India and South Asia, talked about this in an email.
Back in June 2023, during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the US, discussions with tech leaders like Nadella centered on how technology, especially AI, can improve the lives of people in India.
Nadella’s last visit to India a year ago involved meeting with various key players, from customers and startups to developers and students. Now, there is a buzz that he is planning to meet founders of significant AI startups in Mumbai and Bangalore during this visit.
Looking back at 2023, it was a big year for Microsoft in the AI arena. Back in October, Nadella had some big plans for AI in Microsoft’s annual letter, especially after teaming up with OpenAI. Then in March, Microsoft shared that they are adding AI to all Office 365 apps and services. They even introduced Copilot, an AI assistant using OpenAI’s cool GPT-4 technology.
Building on this collaboration, Microsoft integrated the Bing search engine into ChatGPT in May 2023, directly competing with Google. However, in November, there was a surprise when OpenAI’s board dismissed Altman due to communication issues. Nadella then said Altman and the others are going to join Microsoft’s new super-smart AI research team and Altman will be the CEO.
With AI gaining more traction, projections indicate a nearly 15 percent increase in Microsoft’s revenues for the 2024 fiscal year, outpacing the overall tech sector.
