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G42, Microsoft to launch two AI centres in Abu Dhabi

The first centre will convene academic researchers and AI practitioners from across the private sector to develop, document, and share emerging Responsible AI best practices…reports Asian Lite News

Microsoft Corp. and G42 have announced that they will be establishing two new centres in Abu Dhabi to advance their collective Responsible AI goals. The centres are part of their partnership announced earlier this year.

Co-founded and co-funded by G42 and Microsoft, with the endorsement of the UAE’s Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Technology Council (AIATC), the first centre will identify, develop, and advance best practices and industry standards for the responsible use of AI in the Middle East and the Global South. The second is an expansion of Microsoft’s AI for Good Research Lab into Abu Dhabi, which will support AI projects that address key societal goals.

The first centre will convene academic researchers and AI practitioners from across the private sector to develop, document, and share emerging Responsible AI best practices. G42 and Microsoft are committed to working closely with the centre to bring together individuals and organisations from across the Middle East, the Global South, and beyond to learn from each other and drive ongoing advances in this emerging field.

Simultaneously, Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab will open its first centre in the Middle East in Abu Dhabi. This new lab will harness the power of AI to collaborate with nonprofit organisations and partners, addressing key economic and societal challenges across the Middle East and Africa. In close collaboration with the Lab’s existing team in Nairobi, this initiative will prioritise the development of large language models for underrepresented languages, helping bridge the global language divide. It will also focus on advancing food security and strengthening climate resilience by applying AI to high-resolution geospatial data, enhancing disaster preparedness and response capabilities.

The partnership will work alongside the AIATC, which was created in January to develop plans and research programmes in collaboration with local and global partners to enhance Abu Dhabi’s status in the fields of artificial intelligence and advanced technology.

The two centres build on the work that Microsoft and G42 are undertaking to implement Responsible AI standards and practices. This includes ensuring that the two companies’ generative AI models and applications are developed, deployed, and used safely — a commitment central to the Responsible AI policies that Microsoft has developed and implemented, and that G42 is now adopting in connection with their partnership and commitments to the US and UAE governments.

Among other things, these policies govern the design and use of AI applications, incorporate digital safety and cybersecurity plans for model training and deployment, and establish “red teaming” processes to strengthen AI systems against probing, testing, and attacks. G42’s adoption of these policies will solidify the UAE’s position as a trusted global AI hub and ensure that Microsoft and G42 AI technologies running on Azure are responsibly shared with their growing joint customer base globally.

“Today’s steps will add to the important progress Microsoft and G42 are making to broaden access to the responsible, safe, and secure use of artificial intelligence,” said Brad Smith, Vice Chair and President of Microsoft. “We are committed to additional steps with G42 that advance responsible AI use for customers and strengthen the relationship not only between our two companies but between our two countries.”

Peng Xiao, Group CEO of G42, said, “By advancing Responsible AI together with Microsoft, we are creating a framework for AI to serve all of humanity. These new centres reflect our shared vision for leveraging technology to solve real-world challenges, positioning Abu Dhabi as a global hub for AI innovation that prioritises safety, trust, and collaboration, especially across the Global South.”

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US Warns On Microsoft Outage, Nadella Assures Fix

CISA warns hackers exploiting Microsoft outage for phishing, as CEO Satya Nadella assures efforts to restore systems safely and globally are underway, reports Asian Lite News

US cybersecurity agency CISA has warned that hackers are trying to take advantage of Microsoft outage for phishing and other malicious activity, as the tech giant’s Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella said they are working hard to safely bring systems back online globally.

The US cybersecurity agency warned individuals to “avoid clicking on phishing emails or suspicious links,” which can lead to email compromise and other scams.

A passenger looks at the displays as there are delays in airline services caused by an ongoing global outage of Microsoft at Terminal 3 of Delhi Airport in New Delhi on Friday. (Photo: IANS/Anupam Gautam)

“Threat actors continue to use the widespread IT outage for phishing and other malicious activity. CISA urges organisations to ensure they have robust cybersecurity measures to protect their users, assets, and data against this activity,” it said in a statement

The outage has impacted Windows 10 and later systems, and is due to the “CrowdStrike Falcon content update and not to malicious cyber activity”.

Nadella said in a post on X that “We are aware of this issue and are working closely with CrowdStrike and across the industry to provide customers technical guidance and support to safely bring their systems back online.”

A fresh Microsoft statement read that they are actively supporting customers to assist in their recovery.

According to CrowdStrike, the issue has been identified, isolated and a fix has been deployed.

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Microsoft faces heat from US Congress over cybersecurity

Microsoft President Brad Smith spent more than three hours answering questions from members of the House Committee on Homeland Security in Washington…reports Asian Lite News

Members of US Congress on Thursday pressed Microsoft to explain a “cascade of avoidable errors” that allowed a Chinese hacking group to breach emails of senior US officials.

Microsoft President Brad Smith spent more than three hours answering questions from members of the House Committee on Homeland Security in Washington, assuring them cybersecurity is being woven more deeply into the technology company’s culture.

“Microsoft accepts responsibility for each and every one of the issues cited” in a scathing US government report about the breach “without equivocation or hesitation,” Smith told the committee.

The Cyber Safety Review Board (CSRB), led by the US Department of Homeland Security, conducted a seven-month investigation into the incident last year that involved the China-affiliated cyberespionage actor Storm-0558.

“Microsoft has an enormous footprint in both government and critical infrastructure networks,” US congressman and committee member Bennie Thompson said to Smith as the hearing opened.

“It is our shared interest that the security issues raised by the (report) be addressed quickly.”

The operation, which was first discovered by the US State Department in June 2023, included hacks on the official and personal mailboxes of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and US Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns.

Microsoft’s core business is to provide cloud computing services, such as Azure or Office360, that host sensitive data and power business and government operations across major sectors of the economy.

The report criticized a Microsoft corporate culture that was “at odds with… the level of trust customers place in the company.”

The review identified a series of operational and strategic decisions by Microsoft that opened the door to the breach, including the failure to identify a new employee’s compromised laptop following a corporate acquisition in 2021.

It also found that Microsoft fell short of safety standards seen at competing cloud companies, including Google, Amazon and Oracle.

“The Board finds that this intrusion was preventable and should never have occurred,” the review said, pinpointing “the cascade of Microsoft’s avoidable errors that allowed this intrusion to succeed.”

The report also recommended that Microsoft develop and publicly release a plan with timelines to enact wide-ranging security reforms across its products and practices.

“The real challenge is how you achieve effective lasting cultural change,” Smith said, noting Microsoft has nearly 226,000 employees.

Smith said Microsoft has the equivalent of 34,000 engineers working full time on answering the security shortcomings in “the largest engineering project focused on cybersecurity in the history of digital technology.”

Microsoft’s board on Wednesday approved a change that will tie cybersecurity accomplishments with annual bonuses for senior executives and make it part of every employee’s annual review, according to Smith.

Microsoft detects some 300 million cyberattacks on its customers daily, with most of those coming from China, Iran, Korea, Russia, or ransomware operations, Smith told the committee.

“We’re dealing with four formidable foes in China, Russia, North Korea and Iran, and they are getting better,” Smith said.

“We should expect them to work together; they’re waging attacks at an extraordinary rate.”

While it is inevitable that adversaries will use artificial intelligence for increasingly sophisticated attacks, the technology is already being used to strengthen cyber defenses, Smith added.

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EU Presses Microsoft on Bing GenAI Compliance


The Commission has intensified its enforcement actions against Microsoft, giving the company until May 27 to provide the requested information….reports Asian Lite News

The European Commission on Friday directed Microsoft to provide more information about the generative AI (GenAI) features in its search engine Bing else face fine, as the tech giant failed to respond to a March 14 request for inputs regarding specific risks stemming from Bing’s GenAI features.

The Commission stepped up its enforcement actions against Microsoft and the company now has time till May 27 to provide the requested information to the Commission on Bing’s generative AI features, notably “Copilot in Bing” and “Image Creator by Designer”.

If Bing fails to reply within the deadline, the Commission may impose fines up to 1 per cent of the provider’s total annual income or global turnover and periodic penalties up to 5 per cent of the provider’s average daily income or worldwide annual turnover.

The regulator can also impose fines up to 1 per cent of the provider’s total annual income or worldwide turnover for incorrect, incomplete, or misleading information in response to a request for information.

“Following its designation as ‘Very Large Online Search Engine’, Bing is required to comply with the full set of provisions introduced by the Digital Services Act (DSA),” said the Commission.

Microsoft was yet to react to the “legally binding request for information,”.

ALSO READ: Microsoft Bets Big on Cloud

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Microsoft Bets Big on Cloud

The company also announced AI skilling opportunities for 840,000 people in the country and support for the nation’s growing developer community….reports Asian Lite News

Microsoft on Tuesday announced that it will invest $1.7 billion over the next four years in new cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure in Indonesia.

The company also announced AI skilling opportunities for 840,000 people in the country and support for the nation’s growing developer community.

This marks the single largest investment in Microsoft’s 29-year history in the country.

“The investments we are announcing today — spanning digital infrastructure, skilling, and support for developers – will help Indonesia thrive in this new era,” said Satya Nadella, Chairman and CEO, Microsoft.

According to the company, this investment will enable Microsoft to meet the growing demand for cloud computing services in Indonesia, as well as allow the country to capitalise on the significant economic and productivity opportunities presented by the latest AI technology.

“We aim to empower Indonesians with the infrastructure and skills needed for the AI era, aligning with our national vision for digital prowess. It’s a crucial step towards making Indonesia a hub for digital talent and innovation,” said Dharma Simorangkir, President Director of Microsoft Indonesia.

Meanwhile, Microsoft announced plans to provide AI skilling opportunities for 2.5 million people in Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member states by 2025.

The tech giant will provide this training with the help of governments, nonprofit and corporate organisations, and communities in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.

The initiative builds on a range of existing Microsoft skills programmes in the region, which have already helped many people land jobs or make career changes, especially women, who are still under-represented in the tech sector, the company said.

Meanwhile, Microsoft has posted a revenue of $61.9 billion in its third quarter (Q3) — up 17 per cent — with $21.9 billion in net income which increased 20 per cent.

According to Satya Nadella, Chairman and CEO of Microsoft, Copilot and Copilot stack are orchestrating a new era of AI transformation, driving better business outcomes across every role and industry.

“Our AI innovation continues to build on our strategic partnership with OpenAI as more than 65 per cent of the Fortune 500 now use Azure OpenAI service,” he told analysts during the earnings call.

Microsoft Cloud revenue was $35.1 billion, up 23 per cent year-over-year, in the quarter that ended March 31.

“Overall, we are seeing an acceleration in the number of large Azure deals from leaders across industries, including billion-dollar-plus, multiyear commitments announced this month from Cloud Software Group and the Coca-Cola Company,” said Nadella.

Microsoft now have over 350,000 paid customers.

On GitHub Copilot, there are 1.8 million paid subscribers with growth accelerating to over 35 per cent quarter over quarter.

“We are seeing AI democratise expertise across the workforce,” said Nadella.

“We’re also seeing increased usage intensity from early adopters, including a nearly 50 per cent increase in the number of Copilot-assisted interactions per user in Teams, bridging group activity with business process workflows and enterprise knowledge,” he added.

When it comes to devices, Copilot in Windows is now available on nearly 225 million Windows 10 and Windows 11 PCs, up two times quarter over quarter.

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Cognizant, Microsoft Forge AI Partnership

Cognizant said that it will work to deploy Microsoft 365 Copilot to a million users within their global 2,000 clients and across 11 industries….reports Asian Lite News

Cognizant and Microsoft on Monday announced an expanded partnership with the aim of making the tech giant’s generative AI (GenAI) and Copilots available to millions of users to transform enterprise business operations, enhance employee experiences, and accelerate cross-industry innovation.

As part of this collaboration, Cognizant purchased 25,000 Microsoft 365 Copilot seats for its associates, along with 500 Sales Copilot seats and 500 Services Copilot seats to improve productivity, streamline workflows and transform customer experiences.

“Generative AI can be a game-changer for virtually every business in every industry, opening up new possibilities for innovation, efficiency and growth,” Ravi Kumar S., CEO, Cognizant, said in a statement.

“That’s why we are investing $1 billion in GenAI over the next three years and leading the development of new research to explore its potential for our clients, their employees and end customers,” he added.

In addition, Cognizant said that it will work to deploy Microsoft 365 Copilot to a million users within their global 2,000 clients and across 11 industries.

“By combining Cognizant’s industry expertise with Microsoft’s Copilot capabilities, including Copilot for Microsoft 365 and GitHub Copilot — we will help drive AI adoption and innovation for millions of users across its network,” said Judson Althoff, executive VP and chief commercial officer at Microsoft.

According to the company, this partnership has the potential to significantly accelerate AI adoption and innovation in India.

AI is expected to add $450 to $500 billion to India’s GDP by 2025, accounting for 10 per cent of the country’s $5 trillion GDP target, the company mentioned.

Meanwhile, Microsoft on Tuesday announced a $1.5 billion investment in the UAE-based artificial intelligence (AI) technology company, G42.

Both companies will also support the establishment of a $1 billion fund for developers.

The investment will strengthen collaboration on bringing the latest Microsoft AI technologies and skilling initiatives to the UAE and other countries around the world.

As part of this partnership, Brad Smith, Vice Chair and President of Microsoft, will join the G42 Board of Directors, the companies said in a statement.

“This partnership is a testament to the shared values and aspirations for progress, fostering greater cooperation and synergy globally,” said H.H. Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of G42.

G42 and Microsoft will also work together to bring advanced AI and digital infrastructure to countries in the Middle East, Central Asia, and Africa.

“We will work together not only in the UAE, but to bring AI and digital infrastructure and services to underserved nations,” said Smith.

“We will combine world-class technology with world-leading standards for safe, trusted, and responsible AI, in close coordination with the governments of both the UAE and the US,” he added.

ALSO READ: India’s Growing Role in Generative AI Adoption

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Microsoft invests $1.5b in Abu Dhabi’s G42

G42 will run its AI applications and services on Microsoft Azure and partner to deliver advanced AI solutions to global public sector clients and large enterprises…reports Asian Lite News

G42, the leading UAE-based artificial intelligence (AI) technology holding company, and Microsoft have announced a $1.5 billion strategic investment by Microsoft in G42.

The investment will strengthen the two companies’ collaboration on bringing the latest Microsoft AI technologies and skilling initiatives to the UAE and other countries around the world. As part of this expanded partnership Brad Smith, Vice Chair and President of Microsoft, will join the G42 Board of Directors.

This expanded collaboration will empower organisations of all sizes in new markets to harness the benefits of AI and the cloud while ensuring they are adopting AI that adheres to world-leading standards in safety and security.

Building on the two organisations’ long-standing collaboration in AI and digital transformation initiatives, Microsoft’s investment deepens the reciprocal commitment to this strategic partnership. G42 will run its AI applications and services on Microsoft Azure and partner to deliver advanced AI solutions to global public sector clients and large enterprises.

G42 and Microsoft will also work together to bring advanced AI and digital infrastructure to countries in the Middle East, Central Asia, and Africa, providing these nations with equitable access to services to address important governmental and business concerns while ensuring the highest standards of security and privacy.

H.H. Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of G42, said, “Microsoft’s investment in G42 marks a pivotal moment in our company’s journey of growth and innovation, signifying a strategic alignment of vision and execution between the two organisations. This partnership is a testament to the shared values and aspirations for progress, fostering greater cooperation and synergy globally.”

The partnership will also support the development of a skilled and diverse AI workforce and talent pool that will drive innovation and competitiveness for the UAE and broader region with the investment of $1B in a development fund for developers.

“Our two companies will work together not only in the UAE, but to bring AI and digital infrastructure and services to underserved nations,” said Brad Smith, Microsoft Vice Chair and President. “We will combine world-class technology with world-leading standards for safe, trusted, and responsible AI, in close coordination with the governments of both the UAE and the United States.”

The commercial partnership is backed by assurances to both governments through a first of its kind agreement to apply world-class best practices to ensure the secure, trusted, and responsible development and deployment of AI. Microsoft and G42 will work closely and elevate the security and compliance framework of their joint international infrastructure. Both companies will move forward with a commitment to comply with US and international trade, security, responsible AI, and business integrity laws and regulations. The work on these topics is governed by a detailed Intergovernmental Assurance Agreement (IGAA) between G42 and Microsoft that was developed in close consultation with both the UAE and US governments.

Peng Xiao, Group Chief Executive Officer of G42, said: “Through Microsoft’s strategic investment, we are advancing our mission to deliver cutting-edge AI technologies at scale. This partnership significantly enhances our international market presence, combining G42’s unique AI capabilities with Microsoft’s robust global infrastructure. Together, we are not only expanding our operational horizons but also setting new industry standards for innovation.”

Samer Abu-Ltaif, Microsoft Corporate Vice President and President, Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, added: “Our investment in G42 stands as a testament to the thriving and dynamic tech landscape in the UAE and the broader region. This strategic partnership is well-positioned to ignite opportunities for our customers and partners, accelerate innovation, and fuel economic growth. With G42, we will introduce cutting-edge technologies that will empower countries and markets to advance their digital agendas by harnessing the power of Cloud and AI.”

The collaboration between G42 and Microsoft has expanded through several milestones over the last year. This includes a joint plan announced in April 2023 to develop AI solutions tailored for the public sector and industry, leveraging Microsoft’s extensive partner ecosystem and cloud capabilities. In September 2023, the companies entered into an agreement to introduce sovereign cloud offerings and collaborate on unlocking the potential of advanced AI capabilities on the Azure public cloud platform. Lastly, in November 2023, Microsoft announced the availability of G42’s Jais Arabic Large Language Model on the new Azure AI Cloud Model-as-a-Service offering.

Recently, First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) and Microsoft announced collaboration in developing new AI-based banking capabilities under a strategic business partnership signed today, with the UAE’s largest bank and the global technology leader to cooperate on the launch of an ‘AI Innovation Hub’ for financial services.

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Microsoft announces new AI office in UK

Writing in a blog post announcing the new hub, he said: “This is great news for Microsoft AI and for the UK…reports Asian Lite News

Microsoft is opening a new hub devoted to artificial intelligence in London. The office will focus on its work on AI products, as well as research. It comes amid an increasing growth of AI companies in the capital, including the opening of ChatGPT creator OpenAI’s first office outside the US.

Microsoft recently announced the creation of Microsoft AI, a new team within the company to focus on AI, led by Mustafa Suleyman, the British co-founder of AI giant DeepMind, which is now owned by Google.

Mr Suleyman said the new AI hub, which will be based at Microsoft’s offices in Paddington, will “drive pioneering work to advance state-of-the-art language models and their supporting infrastructure, and to create world-class tooling for foundation models”.

Writing in a blog post announcing the new hub, he said: “This is great news for Microsoft AI and for the UK.

“As a British citizen, born and raised in London, I’m proud to have co-founded and built a cutting-edge AI business here. I’m deeply aware of the extraordinary talent pool and AI ecosystem in the UK, and I’m excited to make this commitment to the UK on behalf of Microsoft AI. I know – through my close work with thought leaders in the UK Government, business community and academia – that the country is committed to advancing AI responsibly and with a safety-first commitment to drive investment, innovation and economic growth. Our decision to open this hub in the UK reflects this ambition.”

He added that the hub will create jobs, with Microsoft AI “actively hiring exceptional individuals who want to work on the most interesting and challenging AI questions of our time”.

The creation of the AI centre further expands Microsoft’s presence in the UK, which includes its Microsoft Research lab in Cambridge, and builds on the company’s pledge to invest £2.5 billion into the UK, announced late last year, as part of its AI plans.

ALSO READ-India Urges Digital Giants to Fix Platforms After Microsoft Warning

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-Top News INDIA 2024 Technology

India Urges Digital Giants to Fix Platforms After Microsoft Warning

The Central government has taken a tough stand at Artificial Intelligence-generated content, deepfakes ahead of polls, reports Asian Lite News

 As Microsoft warned India about China’s plan to create and amplify AI-generated content to “benefit its interests” amid the seven-phase elections starting April 19, the Centre has come down heavily on global digital companies, asking them to fix their platforms as part of a new advisory around AI and its potential misuse during polls.

With major elections taking place around the world this year, particularly in India, South Korea and the US: “We assess that China will, at a minimum, create and amplify AI-generated content to benefit its interests,” according to Clint Watts, General Manager, Microsoft Threat Analysis Center.

According to exposure management company Tenable, misinformation spread through AI-generated deepfakes and fake content are the biggest threat to the upcoming polls.

“The biggest threats to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections are misinformation and disinformation as part of influence operations conducted by malicious actors against the electorate,” Satnam Narang, Senior Staff Research Engineer, Tenable, told IANS recently.

Alarmed at AI’s potential misuse, the Centre last month said that social media intermediaries “must not permit any bias or discrimination or threaten the integrity of the electoral process.”

School students create a ‘rangoli’ depicting Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) to raise awareness among people to vote in the upcoming general elections, in Chennai on Thursday, March 28, 2024. (Photo: IANS/R. Parthibhan)

A new IT Ministry advisory now specifically deals with AI, which says that digital platforms have to take full accountability and cannot escape by saying that these AI models are in the “under-testing phase.”

“It is reiterated that non-compliance to the provisions of the IT Act and/or IT Rules would result in potential penal consequences to the intermediaries or platforms or its users when identified, including but not limited to prosecution under IT Act and several other statutes of the criminal code,” according to the advisory.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a conversation with Microsoft Co-founder Bill Gates late last month, also expressed concerns about deepfakes in a democratic country like ours.

“I have engaged with leading minds on AI and its risks. I suggested that we should start with clear watermarks on AI-generated content to prevent misinformation. Proper sources of AI-generated content should also be mentioned,” PM Modi emphasised.

“Someone can even misuse my voice to deceive people and such a deepfake can trigger widespread uproar. We need to think about creating robust dos and don’ts on deepfakes,” the Prime Minister told the billionaire philanthropist.

ALSO READ: China Plans to Disrupt Indian Elections Using AI, Warns Microsoft

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Microsoft becomes most valuable company ever

The company’s market value topped the previous record set by Apple…reports Asian Lite News

Microsoft ended the week with a market capitalisation of $3.125 trillion, the highest for any company ever, Barron’s reported.

The company’s market value topped the previous record set by Apple, which reached $3.09 trillion in July. Apple ended Friday with a market cap of $2.916 trillion. Microsoft is also the first U.S. company to close with a market cap greater than $3.1 trillion, Barron’s reported.

Microsoft stock closed the week at $420.55. Over the past 12 months, its shares have soared 60 per cent, largely thanks to the enthusiasm about its artificial intelligence software.

The company last month reported quarterly revenue and profit ahead of Wall Street’s forecasts, and the management made note of the company’s AI gains.

“We’ve moved from talking about AI to applying AI at scale,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said in a statement at the time.

“By infusing AI across every layer of our tech stack, we’re winning new customers and helping drive new benefits and productivity gains across every sector,” Nadella had said, Barron’s reported.

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