Microsoft is strengthening its artificial intelligence expertise with the goal of "setting a new pace for innovation," according to The New York Times.
The tech giant has hired former OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and president Greg Brockman to lead a new research lab. Microsoft has invested more than $13 billion in OpenAI and remains committed to its partnership with the company, according to a statement from Satya Nadella, Microsoft's CEO, posted on X. But it is now also acting fast to grow AI innovation from within.
"We look forward to moving quickly to provide them with the resources needed for their success," Mr. Nadella said.
Mr. Altman will be the CEO of the new research lab, which will function independently within Microsoft, according to the Times.
Microsoft has deep roots in healthcare, including its partnership with Epic. The two companies aim to bring generative AI to EHRs. Mr. Nadella recently appeared in a "fireside chat" with Sumit Rana, senior vice president of Epic, and talked about the exciting potential of AI in healthcare.
"I'm grounded in the fact that any difference we can make to health outcomes is going to help all of us across our global society," he said. "To me, this is where it gets real. Technology for technology's sake is not that interesting. But technology applied in a meaningful way on society's biggest problems … is going to be the most impactful thing. So I am thrilled to be partners with you."
Mr. Nadella also touted Microsoft's many health system partnerships in October during its quarterly earnings call. He called out the partnership with Charlotte, N.C.-based Atrium Health in particular, which is using the DAX Copilot to apply generative models for drafting high-quality clinical notes with the goal of increasing clinician productivity. He also mentioned providers at Chicago-based Northwestern Medicine, among others, are using a new healthcare data solution, Microsoft Fabric, to unify data in a secure, compliant way.