Microsoft to invest $50 billion by 2030 to bridge AI divide across Global South

Microsoft says it is on pace to invest $50 billion in 'Global South' AI push

Feb 18 (Reuters) - Microsoft (MSFT.O), opens new tab on Wednesday said it is on pace to invest $50 billion by the end of the decade to help expand AI to countries across the 'Global South'. The announcement was made at the AI summit in New Delhi, where top executives from global AI giants meet several world leaders this week. The 'Global South' refers to developing, emerging or lower-income countries, mostly in the southern hemisphere. Microsoft unveiled $17.5 billion worth of AI investments in India last year, as the U.S. tech giant deepened its bet on one of the world's fastest-growing digital markets. Reporting by Abu Sultan in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Microsoft says on pace to invest $50 billion by 2030-end across Global South

In India, the company will train 5.6 million people in 2025 and aims to equip 20 million Indians by 2030, including through Microsoft Elevate for Educators, supporting two million teachers across over two lakh schools. Tech giant Microsoft on Wednesday announced at the India AI Impact Summit in New Delhi that the company is on pace to invest $50 billion by the end of the decade to help the Global South access artificial intelligence (AI). "Our five-part program is designed to make AI diffusion real at scale, so communities have what they need to access AI, trust it, and apply it to local priorities, with progress they can track," Microsoft president Brad Smith said in a post on X. In India, the company will train 5.6 million people in 2025 and aims to equip 20 million Indians by 2030, including through Microsoft Elevate for Educators, supporting two million teachers across over two lakh schools.

What's Going On With Microsoft Stock Wednesday? - Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Microsoft Vows $50 Billion AI Push To Close Global South Tech Gap Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) on Tuesday announced a major initiative to invest $50 billion by 2030 to accelerate the adoption and accessibility of artificial intelligence (AI) across the Global South. The tech giant shared this vision at the India AI Impact Summit on Tuesday, emphasizing the growing gap in AI adoption between wealthier regions and developing markets. Microsoft's $50 Billion AI Commitment Microsoft said its plan is organized around five workstreams: expanding AI-ready infrastructure, providing technology and skills support for schools and nonprofits, improving performance across languages and cultures, backing locally designed AI projects, and building measurement tools to track adoption. On infrastructure, Microsoft said it spent more than $8 billion in its last fiscal year on datacenter buildouts serving Global South regions, including India, Mexico, and multiple countries across Africa, South America, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East. Microsoft said it has already reached 117 million people across Africa through partnerships that include Cassava Technologies and Mawingu, and it plans to share another update on progress toward the 250 million people goal. The company also described work on sovereign controls and related options aimed at addressing digital sovereignty needs while maintaining cybersecurity and privacy commitments. Bridging the Gap in the Global South Microsoft said it invested more than $2 billion in the last fiscal year on programs across the Global South that include grants, technology donations, skilling efforts, and product discounts. It also highlighted Microsoft Elevate, launched in July, with a goal of helping 20 million people earn AI-skills credentials by 2028. In India, Microsoft said it trained 5.6 million people in 2025 and later set a target to equip 20 million people in the country with core AI skills by 2030. MSFT Price Action: Microsoft shares were up 0.58% at $399.18 during premarket trading on Wednesday, according to Benzinga Pro data. Photo via Shutterstock Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs To add Benzinga News as your preferred source on Google, click here.

Microsoft says it is on pace to invest $50 billion in 'Global South' AI push

Feb 18 (Reuters) - Microsoft on Wednesday said it is on pace to invest $50 billion by the end of the decade to help expand AI to countries across the 'Global South'. The announcement was made at the AI summit in New Delhi, where top executives from global AI giants meet several world leaders this week. The 'Global South' refers to developing, emerging or lower-income countries, mostly in the southern hemisphere. Microsoft unveiled $17.5 billion worth of AI investments in India last year, as the U.S. tech giant deepened its bet on one of the world's fastest-growing digital markets. (Reporting by Abu Sultan in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema)

India AI Impact Summit 2026: Microsoft pledges $50 billion to bridge Global South AI divide

Microsoft is also working on connectivity, training programs, and AI tools for sectors like education and agriculture. At the India AI Impact Summit 2026, Microsoft has announced that the company is on track to invest $50 billion by the end of this decade to expand AI infrastructure and access across countries in the Global South. The company cited findings from its latest AI Diffusion Report and said AI adoption in developed economies is currently about twice as high as in developing regions, a gap that risks deepening existing economic inequalities if left unaddressed. The planned investment will be divided into five broad pillars: expanding AI-ready infrastructure, scaling digital skills, strengthening multilingual AI capabilities, supporting local innovation, and improving AI adoption metrics. Also read: OnePlus sees sharpest decline as India's smartphone market momentum weakens: Report Over the last fiscal year, Microsoft stated that it invested more than $8 billion in data center infrastructure serving the Global South, which includes India, Mexico, Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East. Along with compute capacity, the company is pursuing internet connectivity initiatives, with the goal of reaching 250 million people in underserved areas. It claims to have already connected over 117 million people in Africa through local partnerships. Also read: Orion or Unitree Go2? Viral robodog row sees Galgotias kicked out of India AI Impact Summit On the skilling front, Microsoft highlighted its broader training push through its Elevate program, which aims to provide millions with AI capabilities. In India, the company intends to support large-scale teacher training and institutional capacity building to aid in the integration of AI tools into classrooms and workforce development programs. Addressing language barriers, Microsoft announced new investments in multilingual AI development, such as datasets, evaluation tools, and benchmarks for under-represented languages. The goal is to ensure that AI systems function reliably beyond English-speaking markets. Also read: Qualcomm announces $150 mn investment for AI startups in India The company also announced new initiatives in agriculture and food security in Africa, where AI tools will be used to generate data-driven insights for policymakers and farmers.