Vodafone Signs $1.5 Billion Deal With Microsoft AI

Vodafone and Microsoft signed a decade long partnership, with Vodafone investing $1.5 billion in cloud computing services.

Microsoft and Vodafone, a telecommunications firm based in the United Kingdom, have announced a new strategic relationship that will last for ten years.

As part of this partnership, the companies will implement more efforts, including incorporating generative artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities.

On January 17, the two firms announced that Vodafone will invest $1.5 billion over the next ten years in cloud computing and “customer-focused artificial intelligence services” created in collaboration with Microsoft.

Microsoft will also utilize Vodafone’s fixed and mobile connection capabilities. Through the use of Microsoft’s generative AI technologies, the generative AI component of the transaction intends to revolutionize how Vodafone delivers its services to its customers.

Microsoft Azure’s OpenAI Service will apply across all client touchpoints for Vodafone, including TOBi, the digital assistant accessible in thirteen of the company’s service nations.

Microsoft will also make the artificial intelligence tool Copilot available to employees of the telecom giant to “transform working practices, boost productivity, and improve digital efficiency.”

The chairman and chief executive officer of Microsoft, Satya Nadella, revealed that the corporation is thrilled to implement the most recent cloud and artificial intelligence technology to assist in improving the customer experience of Vodafone’s hundreds of millions of customers across Africa and Europe.

Vodafone has stated that the AI integrations will be built on “unbiased and ethical privacy and security policies” within its framework for responsible artificial intelligence.

“This new generation of AI will unlock massive new opportunities for every organization and every industry around the world.”

The cooperation intends to hyperscale Vodafone’s Internet of Things (IoT) connective platform and build new digital and financial services, particularly for small and medium-sized firms in Europe and Africa.

In addition to the integration of artificial intelligence, the alliance will also focus on developing new services. Earlier this month, on January 15, Microsoft released a professional edition of the Copilot software.

The commercial version will charge customers $20 per month and provide “business-level” capability to all users. This functionality will include the ability to create bespoke generative pre-training transformers, also known as GPTs, and interface with Microsoft Office.

During a speech that took place on January 16 at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland Nadella referred to the partnership between the firm and OpenAI as a “no-brainer” and stated that the alliance provides a healthy amount of competition in the field of artificial intelligence.