Microsoft developing smaller, cheaper AI technology

Microsoft is reportedly working on developing artificial intelligence technology that is smaller and cheaper to run than the current technology it is currently sourcing from OpenAI.

According to a report by The Information, Microsoft has formed a new team to develop conversational AI that requires lower processing power compared to OpenAI’s technology. The report also notes that Microsoft has moved several top developers from its research group to the new-Gen AI team.

The new team is expected to be part of the Azure cloud unit and could be led by Microsoft corporate vice president Misha Bilenko.

So far, Microsoft has relied heavily on OpenAI for the development of its artificial intelligence-based products. For example: Microsoft’s Bing Chat is powered by the GPT-4 language model, while the Bing AI Image Creator uses the Dall-E 3 image generator to create AI images.

Microsoft doubles down on Copilot:
In other AI news, Microsoft recently launched its Copilot Pro subscription which gives users access to Microsoft’s AI powered Office features, priority access to latest language models like OpenAI’s GPT-4 Turbo, ability to create a custom version of Copilot: Copilot GPT and brings better-detailed image quality with Bing AI image generator.

Microsoft has also launched a CoPilot for Microsoft 365 which is now available for available for enterprise customers and is touted to help businesses become AI-powered. The company had also announced the launch of Copilot Android and iOS app.

With the new subscription, Microsoft now offers its Copilot AI assistant in 3 variants: the free version of Copilot which can function like any other chatbot like ChatGPT or Bard, Copilot Pro subscription which costs $20 per month and a Copilot for Microsoft 365 subscription which costs $30 per month. Livemint