Microsoft Expands Its AI for Earth Program With New $50 Million Investment

Microsoft is expanding its AI for Earth program today at the One Climate Summit in Paris. The company’s AI for Earth program initially launched earlier this year with a $2 million investment, providing 35 grants across 10 countries. The company today pledged a new $50 million investment over the next five years in order to tackle the increasing environmental issues worldwide.

Microsoft President Brad Smith announced at the One Climate Summit today that the company hopes to bring artificial intelligence to organizations and individuals who are working to protect our environment with the new investment. “At Microsoft, we believe artificial intelligence is a game changer. Our approach as a company is focused on democratizing AI so its features and capabilities can be put to use by individuals and organizations around the world to improve real-world outcomes,” Smith stated.

Microsoft’s new strategy for the AI for Earth program involves expanding its seed grants to universities and nongovernmental organizations to utilize AI. The company will also make larger investments to maximize scalability of the most promising projects to be able to get the most out of AI as it continues to contribute towards improving the environment. Later on, the software giant is going to identify some of these technologies and work with their partners to offer platform-level, commercial services on Microsoft’s own services like Azure.

Just recently, Microsoft announced major, environment-focused revamps for its Redmond and Silicon Valley campuses — but the expansion of its AI for Earth program reiterates the company’sr remarkable commitment towards protecting the environment of our planet.