Microsoft AI opens London hub to access ‘enormous pool’ of talent

Microsoft is doubling down on its AI efforts in the UK with the opening of a major new AI hub in London. The Microsoft AI London outpost will focus on advancing state-of-the-art language models, supporting infrastructure, and tooling for foundation models.

The hub will be led by AI scientist and engineer Jordan Hoffmann, who previously distinguished himself as a pioneer at AI companies Inflection and DeepMind, which are also based in London.

"There is an enormous pool of...

8 April 2024 | Artificial Intelligence

How information retrieval is being revolutionised with RAG technology

In an era where digital data proliferates at an unprecedented pace, finding the right information amidst the digital deluge is akin to navigating a complex maze. Traditional enterprise search engines, while powerful, often inundate us with a barrage of results, making it challenging to discern the relevant from the irrelevant. However, amidst this vast expanse of digital information, a revolutionary technology has emerged, promising to transform the way we interact with data in the...

2 October 2023 | Applications

Watch out Google Duplex, Microsoft also has a chatty AI

Not content with being outdone by Google’s impressive (yet creepy) Duplex demo, Microsoft has shown it also has an AI capable of making human-like phone calls. The company first launched its XiaoIce project back in August 2017. In April, Microsoft said it had achieved full duplexing — the ability to speak and listen at the same time, similar to humans. Microsoft’s announcement was made before Google’s demonstration earlier this month but, unlike Google, the company had nothing to show...

23 May 2018 | Ethics & Society

Microsoft dropped some potential deals over AI ethical concerns

According to a director at Microsoft Research Labs, the company has dropped some potential deals with customers over ethical concerns their AI technology may be misused. Speaking at the Carnegie Mellon University – K&L Gates Conference on Ethics and AI in Pittsburgh, Eric Horvitz made the revelation. He says the group at Microsoft looking into possible misuse on a case-by-case basis is the Aether Committee (“Aether” stands for AI and Ethics in Engineering and...

10 April 2018 | Ethics & Society