What you need to know
- Microsoft announced the general availability of Azure OpenAI Service as part of its partnership with OpenAI.
- More businesses can now apply for access to GPT-3.5, Codex, DALL-E 2, and other AI models.
- Microsoft Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella shared that "every product of Microsoft will have some of the same AI capabilities" in the future.
Microsoft's Azure OpenAI Service is now generally available, allowing more businesses to request access to the tool. The expansion, which was shared by Microsoft early this week, comes as part of the tech giant's ongoing partnership with OpenAI. Microsoft was an early investor in OpenAI, committing $1 billion to it in 2019. The company has since continued to work closely with the growing AI company. Recent reports said that Microsoft is considering an additional $10 billion investment in OpenAI.
OpenAI is behind the popular ChatGPT that has appeared in several headlines over the past few months. That chatbot made AI more accessible to general consumers and sprung artificial intelligence into the mainstream. While AI certainly isn't new, OpenAI, ChatGPT, and other tools such as Microsoft's DALL-E 2 have brought more focus to the technology.
In the near future, customers will also be able to access ChatGPT through Azure OpenAI Service.
Nadella also discussed the importance of embracing AI tools:
"The best way to prepare for it is not to bet against this technology, and this technology helping you in your job and your business process. I think they’ll be able to write great articles in the future relying on GPT."
As is the case with most technologies, there are security and ethical concerns surrounding artificial intelligence. AI could be used for malicious purposes, such as scamming people or creating harmful malware or other forms of software. To combat this, Microsoft has several layers of protection.
All developers are required to apply for access to Azure OpenAI Service. Microsoft has a Limited Access Framework in place to restrict access to its AI tools as well. There are also content filters in place to catch "abusive, hateful, and offensive content."
Microsoft Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella talked about the future of AI tools at a Wall Street Journal panel at the World Economic Forum's event on Tuesday, January 17, 2023. The company plans to commercialize OpenAI tools. Nadella also discussed how AI tools will roll out to more Microsoft products in the future.
"Every product of Microsoft will have some of the same AI capabilities to completely transform the product," said the CEO.
