Microsoft OpenAI emails released in the US Department of Justice’s antitrust lawsuit against Google have revealed that Microsoft executives were worried and jealous of Google’s dominance in artificial intelligence. The emails show high-level discussions between CEO Satya Nadella, CTO Kevin Scott, CFO Amy Hood, and co-founder Bill Gates regarding OpenAI.
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Microsoft OpenAI
« I got very, very worried »
Microsoft OpenAI the emails contain some significant admissions. In an email sent to Nadella and Gates, Scott admits that « we are a few years behind in the machine learning scale race » and that it took six months to copy and train Google’s BERT language model because the existing infrastructure was not suitable for it. It seems that Scott did not pay much attention to Google’s artificial intelligence initiatives, as he mentions that he only realized the company’s « game-playing numbers » after competing with Google’s AlphaGo models. At that time, AlphaGo had defeated the world champion in Go.
Microsoft OpenAI however, Scott admits in the emails that he made a mistake and uses the following words: « When they [Google] built all the infrastructure to create models that we couldn’t easily copy, I started to take things more seriously. As we tried to understand where all the capability gaps were between us and Google in model training, I got very, very worried. »
Microsoft OpenAI scott also mentions that Google’s automatic completion features in Gmail were frighteningly good in 2019. Scott states that Microsoft’s machine learning teams have smart people, but they lack resources and that it will take time to grow the teams even if resources are provided. Scott’s comments and clear thoughts on OpenAI are also being conveyed to Microsoft CFO Amy Hood by CEO Nadella, who describes it as a « very good email explaining why we wanted to do this. »
Bill Gates Opened the Door to OpenAI
Microsoft’s OpenAI Investments Born from Fear and Jealousy
Microsoft made its first $1 billion investment in OpenAI in 2019. Over the years, Microsoft has invested over $13 billion in OpenAI. The company has integrated OpenAI’s GPT language models, which power ChatGPT, into its Office applications, Bing search engine, Edge, and even the Windows operating system. With its investment in OpenAI, Microsoft has not only eased its fears but has also positioned itself as a leader in the field of artificial intelligence. However, the competition remains fierce and is progressing rapidly.
Conclusion
The emails released in the US Department of Justice’s antitrust lawsuit against Google have shed light on the concerns and jealousies of Microsoft executives regarding Google’s dominance in artificial intelligence. It is clear that Microsoft’s investments in OpenAI were born from fear and jealousy, but they have paid off. Microsoft has positioned itself as a leader in the field of artificial intelligence and is continuing to innovate. However, the competition remains fierce, and Microsoft cannot afford to rest on its laurels. The company must continue to invest in and develop its artificial intelligence capabilities to stay ahead of the curve.
