How serious is Microsoft about AI? Company launches 5,000-strong Microsoft AI and Research Group

This morning at Ignite 2016 Microsoft announced formation of the Microsoft AI and Research Group, bringing together Microsoft's global research organization with more than 5,000 computer scientists and engineers focused on the company's AI product efforts.

The Research Group is nearly 25 years old. But, appending it with AI demonstrates the company's commitment to AI, and Satya Nadella's.

This announcement follows two Monday keynotes spearheaded by the Microsoft CEO in which he hammered AI. The afternoon keynote was practically dedicated to AI's future in productivity, customer service, integrated with CRM and Dynamics 365. Nadella described AI as sitting at an "historic inflection point," third in line after the printing press and World Wide Web in democratizing information. In the morning keynote he outlined Microsoft's mission to "[democratize] AI for every person and organization to help solve society's most pressing challenges." Thus, Microsoft is infusing intelligence into everything it delivers, says Nadella, from applications to infrastructure.

This new AI and Research Group will be led by Harry Shum as executive vice president of the Group. Shum is a 20-year Microsoft veteran whose career has spanned leadership roles across ...