Microsoft Build 2023 and the future of AI

If you are a developer who is interested in AI, you will not want to miss Microsoft Build 2023, the annual flagship event for developers by Microsoft. In this blog post, I will summarize some of the highlights and announcements from the event that showcase how AI is redefining what and how developers build, as well as how AI is changing the future of work.

Microsoft Build 2023: AI tools for developers

One of the main themes of Microsoft Build 2023 is how AI is transforming the way developers create software and applications. Microsoft has been at the forefront of AI innovation, partnering with OpenAI to accelerate AI breakthroughs and to ensure these benefits are broadly shared with the world. Microsoft has also introduced a new AI-powered Bing search engine and Edge browser to transform the largest software category in the world – search.

At Microsoft Build 2023, Microsoft announced several new AI tools and features for developers, such as:

- Greater availability of Azure OpenAI Service with added support for ChatGPT and OpenAI’s groundbreaking GPT-4 model. ChatGPT is a conversational AI system that can chat with users on any topic, while GPT-4 is a large language model that can generate natural language text for various tasks and domains.

- Copilots across a wide range of users, including Dynamics 365 Copilot, Microsoft 365 Copilot and Copilot for Power Platform. Copilots are applications that use modern AI and large language models like GPT-4 to assist people with complex tasks. For example, Microsoft 365 Copilot can help you write emails, documents, presentations and more by using natural language requests and data from your Microsoft Graph.

- Expansion of a new AI-powered Bing to the Windows 11 taskbar, mobile and Skype; Bing Image Creator to chat; and a full open preview of the platform, no waitlist required. Bing Image Creator is a tool that lets you create custom images using natural language commands and plugins.

- Growing the AI plugin ecosystem. Microsoft announced that it will adopt the same open plugin standard that OpenAI introduced for ChatGPT, enabling interoperability across ChatGPT and the breadth of Microsoft’s copilot offerings. Plugins are tools that augment the capabilities of AI systems, enabling them to interact with APIs from other software and services to retrieve real-time information, incorporate company and other business data, perform new types of computations and safely take action on the user’s behalf.

These are just some of the examples of how Microsoft is empowering developers with enterprise-compliant AI – with a commitment to delivering new capabilities in ways that meet its existing commitments to data security and privacy in the enterprise.

Microsoft Build 2023: AI for the future of work

Another theme of Microsoft Build 2023 is how AI is changing the future of work. As we enter a hybrid world where people work from anywhere and collaborate across different devices and platforms, AI can help us be more productive, creative and connected.

At Microsoft Build 2023, Microsoft showcased some of the ways that AI can enhance our work experience, such as:

- Microsoft Edge: Your AI-powered browser, innovating for businesses and developers. Microsoft Edge is the first browser to integrate AI-powered search, and the only one with Bing built-in. It also offers a dedicated work experience for a hybrid world, with features like workspaces for shared tabs on a project, simplified Edge management in the Microsoft 365 admin center, and improved Edge on mobile for businesses.
- Native integration of Microsoft 365 Copilot into Microsoft Edge. As mentioned earlier, Microsoft 365 Copilot is an AI assistant that can help you with various tasks using natural language requests and data from your Microsoft Graph. In combination with Edge, Microsoft 365 Copilot becomes even more intuitive by following the context of what you’re looking at in the browser to provide better answers.
- Increase the reach of your PWAs with sidebar apps. Sidebar apps are a new way to deliver web apps that run alongside any website in Edge. They can provide useful information or functionality related to what you’re browsing, such as weather forecasts, stock prices, news headlines or shopping deals. You can also use sidebar apps to access your favorite web apps without leaving your current tab.

These are just some of the ways that AI can help us work smarter and faster in a hybrid world.

Conclusion

Microsoft Build 2023 is an exciting event for developers who want to learn more about AI and how it can transform their work. Whether you want to build AI-powered applications or use AI-powered tools to enhance your productivity and creativity, Microsoft has something for you.

If you want to watch the sessions from Microsoft Build 2023 or learn more about the announcements and news from the event, you can visit https://build.microsoft.com/2023/ai.

I hope you enjoyed this summary of Microsoft Build 2023: AI tools for developers. Stay tuned for more blog posts on other topics from the event.