• about reply
WM Reply Logo
Menu
  • About Us
    About Us
    • Newsroom
    • Case Studies
    • Events
    • News & Communications
    • About Us
  • Services
  • SOLUTIONS
    SOLUTIONS
    • Productivity & Collaboration
    • SharePoint Intranets
    • Enterprise Social Networks
    • Digital Workplaces
    • The Accelerator by WM reply
    • Core Technologies
    • SharePoint
    • Power Platform
    • Microsoft Teams
    • Office 365
    • Microsoft FastTrack
    • Microsoft Exchange
    • Yammer
    • Nintex Workflows
    • Microsoft Viva
    • Business Solutions
    • Mobile Applications
    • Document Management
    • Consumer Experience
    • SharePoint Websites Design
    • SharePoint Extranets
  • Careers
  • Contact us
  • about Reply
WM Reply Logo

Search

Focus On

News & Communication

Microsoft CTO expands on cloud-based vision

FOCUS ON: artificial intelligence, Microsoft,

Microsoft chief technology officer Kevin Scott has written about what the firm hopes to accomplish through extensive research and development into what it calls the ‘intelligent cloud’ and the ‘intelligent edge’.

Over the past couple of years most major Silicon Valley companies have greatly advanced their stake in cloud-based infrastructure. As the field has moved forward, so have expectations of what can be accomplished in a world of connected devices. Talk of ‘dumb terminals’ connected to a powerful mainframe located on the web now seems well and truly antiquated. These days the focus is on neural networks of smart devices which can empower users in all kinds of endeavours, well beyond workplace productivity tools like Office 365 and enterprise social network collaboration platforms.

Microsoft, under the stewardship of CEO Satya Nadella is one company at the leading edge of this AI-powered, interconnected future.

Kevin Scott’s recent blog unpacked Microsoft’s terminology by giving examples of his ambition to resolve several global challenges with this technology, while admitting it is still in its early days. Scott explained how the intelligent edge could have a place in increasing food supplies around the world, pointing to the real-world application currently going on in the US state of Washington.

A farmer near the town of Carnation has, since 2011, been using devices such as Internet-connected drones to monitor for pests and soil moisture in his vegetable crops. Special cloud-based Microsoft software called FarmBeats helps the drones to identify the landscape, eventually creating a heat map that can help determine where best to plant his crops.

Another situation in which the intelligent edge can work to predict real world outcomes is in the research of threatened ecosystems. To demonstrate this, Microsoft partnered with entertainment company Disney for a conservation project located near its theme park in Florida. A migratory bird named the purple martin has seen its numbers decline almost 40 per cent since the 1960s, but Disney and Microsoft hope to turn this around with breeding and nesting information gathered from sensors located in specially built birdhouses in and around Orlando.

Finally, Scott believes interconnected smart devices can help curtail waste in energy resources while improving industry safety. In partnership with Schneider Electric, a French firm, Microsoft has deployed sensors and automation tools to configure oil drilling equipment remotely for optimum performance. These devices also mean operations personnel rarely need to go onsite for repair and maintenance.

The company realises that all of this Internet-connected equipment offers potential targets for hackers, and so offers a ‘baked in’ security solution in the form of Azure Sphere. This technology is an actual silicon chip developed by Microsoft off the back of its experience in manufacturing the Xbox gaming console and is designed to protect micro-controller unit-powered devices. Scott’s piece certainly reflects the wide and varied research the company can leverage to solve global problems.

For more details on how Microsoft products can help your business’s productivity, get in touch with us at WM Reply .

RELATED CONTENTS

20.10.2020 / MICROSOFT

News & Communication

Microsoft announces milestone in digital learning

Tech giant Microsoft has revealed that over 500,000 UK residents have increased their skillset with new digital abilities over the last three months, using free online study courses.

27.08.2020 / MICROSOFT

News & Communication

Getting more out of Microsoft Teams

It’s fair to say that life after Covid 19 is going to be very different for every single one of us. Will we return to offices? Will we have a combination of office and working from home? Will we move to permanent home-based working? Whatever your solution, it has never been more important to think about how you make the most of your collaboration tools! That’s where Microsoft Teams comes in.

26.08.2020

News & Communication

New Microsoft partner launches powerful laptop for learning

A dual device, the Kano PC laptop features an innovative design that enables users to remove or click new parts into place as they increase their IT skills. Recently released around the world, the product rollout coincides with an announcement from Kano, introducing its new partnership with Microsoft.

 
 
 ​
 
Reply ©​​ 2023 - Company Information -
 PrivacyCookie Settings​
  • Abou​t Reply​​
  • Investors​​​
  • Newsroom
  • Follow Reply on
​
  • ​About WM Reply
  • Privacy & Cookies Policy
  • Information (Client)
  • Information (Supplier)
  • Information (Candidate)